A QUICK BEGINNERS’ COURSE FOR
HOLIDAYMAKERS AND BUSINESS PEOPLE
GET BY
IN
ARABIC
A quick beginners' course for
holidaymakers and businesspeople
Course writers: Salah El-Ghobashy
Principal Lecturer in Arabic,
Polytechnic of Central London
Hilary Wise
Lecturer in Linguistics,
Queen Mary College,
University of London
Producer: Alan Wilding
BBC Books
Get by in Arabic
A BBC Radio course
Contents
Published to accompany a series of programmes
prepared in consultation with
BBC Continuing Education Advisory Council
Acknowledgements
Cover illustration
by courtesy of Ahmed Moustapha
Published by BBC Books,
a division of BBC Enterprises Limited,
Woodlands, 80 Wood Lane,
London W12 OTT
ISBN 0 563 21378 7
First published in 1985
Reissued 1988
Reprinted 1988, 1989
© The Authors and BBC Enterprises Limited 1985
Printed in England
by Belmont Press, Northampton
This book is set in 10 on 1 1 point Univers Medium by
Arab World Typesetters, London
page
Map of the Arab world 4
The course and how to use it 5
Guide to pronunciation 8
Chapter 1 Meeting people 1 3
Greetings; farewells; how are
you?; saying where you're from;
what your job is; 'see you
tomorrow'
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Eating and drinking 22
Ordering tea, coffee and fruit
juice; asking if they sell beer;
ordering a complete meal
Shopping 31
Asking the price of souvenirs;
buying postcards and stamps;
bargaining
In the hotel 42
Booking a room; saying what
facilities you want; using the
phone; making an appointment;
changing money
Out and about 50
Asking the way; finding out train
times; using taxis; buying a
train ticket
Chapter 6 Business and pleasure 60
Saying which languages you speak;
being invited to someone's home
Can you 'Get by'? 68
Reference section 7 1
Answers 76
Word list 82
An introduction to Arabic writing 86
The course...
and how to use it
Get by in Arabic is a six-programme radio course
for anyone planning to visit an Arabic-speaking
country. It offers a basic 'survival kit' for dealing
with the kinds of situation likely to arise on a visit
abroad and assumes no previous knowledge of the
language.
About Arabic
About 1 80 million people speak Arabic as their
first language. As the language of the*Koran, it is
also learnt by many millions of Moslems
throughout the world.
Arabic is sometimes thought to be a 'difficult'
language, perhaps because it is written in an
unfamiliar script. So in this book, we have used a
writing system based on the Roman alphabet to
represent the sounds of the language.
In Arab countries, courtesy and sociability are
highly valued, and this is reflected in the language.
It abounds in polite expressions, appropriate to
particular situations, and any foreigner making the
effort to speak Arabic will be welcomed with
added warmth and hospitality.
What kind of Arabic?
There are basically two kinds of Arabic: literary
and spoken. Literary Arabic is used as the written
medium throughout the Arab world, and is spoken
on the more formal occasions — in speeches,
sermons, news broadcasts and so on. But for all
everyday purposes — at home, in shops and
offices — colloquial Arabic is used. The area of the
Arab world is so vast (three times larger than the
whole of Europe from Finland to Spain and from
Ireland to Greece) that, not surprisingly, the
language varies from country to country.
o
khamsa 5
There are a number of reasons for choosing
Egyptian Arabic. Geographically and historically
Egypt lies at the heart of the Arab world. Its
population (49 million) by far exceeds that of any
other Arab country. Practically everyone in the
Arab world is exposed, directly or indirectly, to
Egyptian Arabic. Films, cassettes of popular songs
and television soap operas are exported on a
massive scale to other Arab countries. It is
generally held to be the most prestigious spoken
variety and whichever country you visit you will
find people can understand and adapt to Egyptian
Arabic.
However, the course also includes some non-
Egyptian words which are in widespread use
throughout the Arab world. These are given in the
additional vocabulary and shown in square
brackets.
The programmes
• are based on real-life conversations specially
recorded in Cairo, so you get used to hearing
everyday Arabic right from the start.
• enable you to cope with confidence in basic
day-to-day situations such as meeting people,
eating out, shopping and bargaining, travelling
around, finding a room, making an appointment,
and so on.
The book includes
• an introduction to the sounds of Arabic
• the key words and phrases for each programme
• the texts of the conversations in the order they
appear in the programmes
• short explanations of the language
• extra useful vocabulary for each basic situation
and background information about life in Arab
countries
• exercises to test what you've learnt
• a reference section including language notes,
the key to exercises, an introduction to the
Arabic script for the really adventurous, and an
Arabic-English word-list
The two cassettes
• contain an expanded form of the programmes
and extra conversations and exercises. The key
words in the 'Guide to pronunciation' section
are given at the start of Cassette 1 , so you can
hear and imitate them while getting to know the
writing system we have used; spoken answers
to the exercises and test in this book are also
given.
• give you the chance to go at your own pace,
and take your study of the language a stage
further, if you wish.
To make the most of the course
The way you use the course will depend on you
and whether you're using the cassettes or the
programmes or both. Here are some suggestions:
• If you have the cassettes, practise the key
words given at the start of Cassette 1 , which
are printed on pi 2.
• Before each programme, look at the key words
and phrases at the beginning of each chapter,
and practise saying them aloud. Read the
conversations aloud several times, with
someone else if possible. Check the meaning of
any words you don't know. Words appearing for
the first time are given after the dialogues,
otherwise you can check in the full word-list at
the end of the book. Then read the explanations
provided.
6
sitta
1
V
sabta 7
• During each programme, listen to the
conversations without looking at the book and
concentrate on the sounds of the language.
When you're asked to repeat a word or phrase,
try saying it aloud and confidently; this will help
you to remember the expressions and to learn to
say them with the proper stress. On the
cassettes the pauses may seem a little short at
first; if so, stop the tape.
• After each programme, read through the
conversations aloud again. If you have the
cassettes, you may find it useful to imitate the
conversations phrase by phrase. Check again on
the language explanations, then work through
the exercises.
• Making the most of the cassettes: besides the
dialogues and explanations expanding on the
programmes, the cassettes contain additional
conversations and exercises to reinforce what
you've already learnt, and extend your
vocabulary. Some of the exercises will draw on
the additional vocabulary given at the end of
each chapter. So if you make full use of the
cassettes you can take your Arabic well beyond
the stage of 'getting by'.
Guide to pronunciation
Arabic has its own alphabet of 28 letters, and an
introduction to the Arabic script is given on p86.
In this book, though, we have used a modified
form of the Roman alphabet. The following is a
guide to the written symbols we are using and the
sounds they represent. The description of sounds
relate to standard southern English.
Contrary to general belief, most of the sounds of
Arabic are similar to those found in English; only
about half a dozen will be unfamiliar to English
speakers (and two of these occur relatively
infrequently anyway).
• The vowels
There are three short vowels:
a like the vowel in English 'hat' or 'back', as
in gamal (camel)
i like the vowel in 'hit' or 'ship', as in bint
(girl)
u like the vowel in 'put' or 'hood', as in shuft
(I saw)
and five long ones:
aa like a longer version of the vowel in 'met',
as in haat (bring)
ii like the vowel in 'keen', as in miin? (who?)
uu like the vowel in 'food', as in nuur (light)
oo like the vowel in 'home', except the lips
are rounder and tenser, as in yoom (day)
ee like the vowel in 'may' or 'lane', but with
the lips more widely and tensely spread, as
in feen? (where?)
• The consonants
The sounds represented by b, d, f, g, h, j, k, I,
m, n, s, t, v, w, y, z are virtually identical to
their English counterparts,
sh (underlined) represents the sound you find
in 'shoot' or 'shop' and not the one in
'mishap'; eg shaay (tea)
r a 'rolled' r, made by vibrating the tip of the
tongue behind the teeth, as in wara
(behind)
S, T, D, 2 represent 'heavy' or 'thick'
versions of s, t, d, and z. They are
pronounced with the muscles of the lips
and the tongue very lax and loose, and can
affect adjacent vowels, particularly aa,
which is then pronounced more like the
vowel in 'half'. Listen on the cassette to
the difference in both the initial consonant
and vowel in:
*
8 tamanya
A
tista 9
saami (man's name) and Saafi (pure)
taani (second) and Taalib (student)
kh (underlined) like the final sound in Scottish
'loch', as in khamsa (five)
gh (underlined) like the French 'r' sound (like
a very brief gargle!), as in ghaali
(expensive)
' indicates a glottal stop, which you find a
lot in Cockney English replacing a 't', as in
'bu'er' or 'Sco'land'. In Arabic it is a sound
in its own right, and not an indication that
something has been omitted. Eg ma'aas
(size)
q as in ilqaahira (Cairo) is similar to a 'k'
sound, but produced further back, in about
the same place as gh. It has the same
effect on adjacent vowels as the 'thick'
consonants.
H represents a very aspirated 'h'. You can
achieve it by pretending you have drunk
something very hot, breathing out heavily
over the back of your tongue. When you
make this sound, you should be able to feel
the friction at the back of your throat. Eg
Haaga (thing)
is an unfamiliar sound in English. It is
somewhere between the glottal stop and
the gh in ghaali, and is made with the
whole of the tongue as far back as possible
in the throat; as in Cala (on)
Consonants, like vowels, may be long; we have
indicated this by doubling the letter. You must
pronounce these consonants as doubles, ie as in
English 'smalllad' or 'commonname'.
Sala (prayer) Salla (he prayed)
ana (I) fanni (artistic)
The definite article (the) is il- and is joined to the
noun:
kart (a card) ilkart (the card)
But when the noun begins with any of the
following consonants:
tdnszshrTDSZ
the 'I' disappears and the first consonant is
doubled and pronounced long:
nuur (light) innuur (the light)
raagil (a man) irraagil (the man)
In short words like fi (at, in), wi (and), li (to, for),
the 'i' often disappears when another vowel
precedes or follows:
talaata wnuSS (three and a half)
ilwalad w ilbint (the boy and the girl)
f ilqaahira (in Cairo)
If a word ends in two consonants and the next
word begins with one, Egyptians often put in a
short 'helping' vowel, to avoid the combination of
three consonants in a row, which they find
difficult. This is shown in the transcripts of the
recorded conversations by an italic i, eg nuSS; kiilu
(half a kilo).
It's important to stress a word in the right place; if
the final vowel is long, it is stressed:
maZbuuT bariid
Otherwise the last syllable but one normally carries
the stress:
mudarris mudarrisa
The few exceptions to the above are shown with a
written accent, like this:
dSraga salaTa
Finally, the best way of acquiring a reasonable
pronunciation is to imitate the speakers in the
programmes or the cassettes. You could also try
saying aloud the key words at the beginning of
each chapter, and then compare them with the
native speaker's version. Best of all, of course,
find an Egyptian to help you!
\\
10 Cashara
Hidaashar 1 1
While you should try to be as accurate as possible
in pronounciation, Arabic speakers are not only
used to hearing a wide variety of accents from
within the Arab world, they are also genuinely
delighted to find a foreigner making an effort to
speak Arabic.
Listen and repeat
The following word-list demonstrates the sounds
of Arabic. The words are given at the start of
Cassette 1 .
Long vowels
haat miin yoom feen nuur
Thick consonants
saam Saam taab Taab daani Daani zaahir Zaahir
Other unfamiliar constants
r raagil
bariid
kart
kh khubz
khaalid
sukhna
gh ghaali
baghdaad
ghani
q qaasim
ilqaahira
qarya
k/q kalb/qalb
kaam/qaam
H Haal
Hisaab
aHmad
h/H haal/Haal
hadd/Hadd
' 'ahwa
ba'shiish
la'
t Cala
taawiz
satiid
’It 'amal/Lamal
ma'aas/maCaad
'aal/Caal
Long consonants
sitta
iddiini
innuur
iTTaalib
issana
ishshanTa
Watch the stress
muhandis muhandisa
i itfaDDal itfaDDali
Taalib Taaliba
kwayyis kwayyisa
Sughayyar Sughayyara kallim kallimni
\Y
1 Meeting
1 people
Key expressions
ahlan
ahlan wa sahlan
hallo, nice to meet you
ahlan biik
reply (to a man)
ahlan biiki
reply (to a woman)
SabaaH ilkheer
good morning
SabaaH innuur
reply
misaa' ilkheer
good evening
misaa' innuur
reply
izzayyak?
how are you? (to a man)
izzayyik?
how are you? (to a woman)
ismak 'eeh?
what is your name? (to a man)
ismik 'eeh?
what is your name? (to a
woman)
ismi shiriif
my name is shiriif
ana min landan
1 am from London
ana muhandis
1 am an engineer
mata ssalaama
goodbye
ashuufak imta?
when will 1 see you? (to a man)
ashuufik imta?
when will 1 see you? (to a
woman)
Conversations
1 Hello! How are you?
Two girls meet ...
zeenab aah! naahid! izzayyik?
naahid ilHamdu lillaah, kwayyisa. w inti,
izzayyik?
zeenab ana kwayyisa, ilHamdu lillaah.
In the morning two boys meet ...
Taari' heey! SabaaH ilkheer!
\T
1 2 itnaashar
talattaashar 13
shiriif SabaaH innuur ya Taari'! izzayyak?
Taari' ilHamdu lillaah, kwayyis. w
izzayyak inta?
shiriif ilHamdu lillaah, kwayyis.
In the evening ...
Taari' heey! misaa' ilkheer.
muudi misaa' innuur.
Taari' izzayyak ya muudi?
muudi izzayyak inta?
Taari' ilHamdu lillaah, kwayyis, w inta?
muudi ilHamdu lillaah, kwayyis.
2 What's your name ...?
mu'nis ahlan.
'inaas ahlan biik.
mu'nis inti ismik 'eeh?
'inaas ana ismi 'inaas. w inta?
mu'nis ismi mu'nis.
3 ...and where are you from?
sanaa’ ismak 'eeh?
shiriif ismi shiriif. w inti ismik 'eeh?
sanaa' ana ismi sanaa'.
14 arbattaashar
U
shiriif
inti mineen, ya sanaa'?
sanaa '
ana min hina, min maSr. w inta
mineen?
shiriif
ana min buur saCiid.
sanaa ’
ahlan wa sahlan.
shiriif
ahlan biiki.
Taari' meets people from around the Arab world.
Taari'
misaa' ilkheer.
Man
misaa' innuur.
Taari’
inta mineen min faDlak?
Man
ana min issudaan, min ilkhartuum
Man
...ana min iSSumaal.
Man
...ana min issuCudiyya.
Man
...ana min ilqaahira.
Man
...ana min 'aSwaan.
Man
...ana min nuuba.
4 What do you do ...?
Man
ana muhandis. w inta?
Man
ana mudiir bank.
Woman
ana mudarrisa. w inti?
Woman
ana duktuura.
Man
ana Taalib. w inta?
Man
ana Taalib kamaan.
5 Saying goodbye ...
zeenab and her friend arrange to meet the next
day.
zeenab
ashuufik imta?
Friend
ashuufik bukra, in sha'allaah.
zeenab
bukra... hina?
Friend
'aywa, hina.
zeenab
mata ssalaama.
Friend
mata ssalaama.
\o
khamastaashar
Vocabulary
Explanations
ana /
buur satiid Port Said
inta you (m)
'aSwaan Aswan
inti you (f)
nuuba Nubia (S. Egypt)
huwwa he
iSSumaal Somalia
hiyya she
issudaan Sudan
'aywa yes
issue udiyya Saudi Arabia
la' no
ilkhartuum Khartoum
wi and
ism name
kamaan also
ya used before person's
ilHamdu lillaah
fine
name (see pi 7)
kwayyis fine.
well
muhandis engineer
bi kheer fine,
well
mudiir bank bank manager
'eeh? what?
mudarrisa teacher (f)
mineen? where from?
duktuura doctor (f)
imta? when?
Taalib student
min from
ashuufik I'll see you
hina here
(to a woman)
maSr Egypt,
Cairo
bukra tomorrow
(see pi 9) in sha'allaah God willing.
/ hope so
Arabic is rich in elaborate greetings, often with
religious overtones. Here are a few of the
commonest.
• Hello
ahlan or ahlan wa sahlan
Reply:
ahlan or ahlan biik (to a man)
ahlan biiki (to a woman)
• Good morning
SabaaH ilkheer (lit morning of goodness)
Reply:
SabaaH ilkheer or SabaaH innuur (lit morning of
light)
'Morning' lasts till lunchtime, which may be at
two or three o'clock.
• Good evening
misaa' ilkheer
Reply:
misaa' ilkheer or misaa' innuur
• When talking directly to someone or calling
them, you usually put ya in front of their name:
ahlan, ya huda.
• How are you?
izzayyak? (to a man)
izzayyik? (to a woman)
To be more emphatic, you can add the pronoun
'you' - inta to a man, inti to a woman:
izzayyak inta? izzayyik inti?
• wi means 'and'. Notice the 'i' disappears before
another vowel: w inta, izzayyak?
It
W
16
sittaashar
sabattaashar 17
• I'm fine ...
kwayyis (if you're a man)
kwayyisa (if you're a woman)
Notice -a is usually added to adjectives and
nouns to make them feminine,
bi kheer is another way of saying 'fine', but it
never changes.
Almost always people add ilHamdu lillaah (lit
praise be to God). In fact, it is often used alone
without kwayyis or bi kheer.
izzayyak? ilHamdu lillaah
• 'I' is ana.
In a sentence like ana kwayyisa (I'm fine), inta
mineen? (where are you from?) or zeenab min
maSr (zeenab is from Egypt), there is no word
equivalent to 'am', 'are' or 'is'.
• 'Name' is ism
If you want to say 'my name' you add -i: ismi
shiriif.
'Your (m) name' is ismak.
'Your (f) name' is ismik.
'What?' is 'eeh? To ask someone their name:
(to a woman) ismik , ,
eeh '
(to a man) ismak
(lit your name is what?)
Again, the pronouns 'I' and 'you' are often
added for emphasis:
inta ismak 'eeh? ana ismi shiriif
• 'Where from?' is mineen? Like 'eeh, this follows
the subject:
inta mineen? huda mineen?
To reply you use min (from) with the name of a
place:
ana min landan. huda min maSr.
• 'He' is huwwa. 'She' is hiyya.
When using the feminine pronouns hiyya or inti,
the noun or adjective must be feminine:
huwwa duktuur he's a doctor
hiyya duktuura she's a doctor
huwwa kwayyis he's fine
hiyya kwayyisa she's fine
There's often a shift in stress when an 'a' is
added:
mudarris, mudarrisa; muhandis, muhandisa
• To say goodbye ...
mata ssalaama (with peace). The reply is the
same.
'When?' is imta? To ask
(to a woman) ashuufik
(to a man) ashuufak
'When shall I see you?':
imta?
You will hear in sha'allaah (God willing) all the
time; it almost automatically follows any
reference to future plans (as in the last
conversation: ashuufik bukra, in sha'allaah -
'I'll see you tomorrow, I hope'). With the right
kind of slightly doubtful intonation, it can even
be a polite way of saying no.
Additional vocabulary
briTanya Britain
amriika America
ingiltira England
iskotlanda Scotland
airlanda Ireland
weelz Wales
kcinada Canada
ostralya Australia
ilhind India
bakistaan Pakistan
ilyabaan Japan
iSSiin China
rusya Russia
baraziil Brazil
See map on p4 for the names of all the Arab
countries.
NB maSr is 'Egypt', but is also used colloquially for
'Cairo'. The formal name for Cairo is ilqaahira.
1 8 tamantaashar
\A
tisattaashar 1 9
mudarris/mudarrisa
teacher
duktuur/duktuura
doctor
Taalib/Taaliba
student
muhandis/muhandisa
engineer
mudiir/mudiira
manager, director
SaHafi/SaHafiyya
journalist
khabiir/khabiira
expert, consultant
sikirteer/sikirteera
secretary
taamil/taamila
worker
sitt/ beet
housewife
raagil 'at maal
businessman
issalaamu taleekum
(lit Peace be
upon you - at any time of day)
taleekum issalaam
Reply
marHaba
Welcome
marHaba biik
Reply (to a man)
marHaba biiki
Reply (to a woman)
keef Haalak?
How are you? (to a man)
keef Haalik?
How are you? (to a woman)
tiSbaH tala kheer
Good night (to a man)
tiSbaHi tala kheer
Good night (to a woman)
Exercises
1 Pretend your name is John, and you are from
England (ingiltira). Now answer the following
questions:
a inta mineen?
b ismak 'eeh?
2 Answer questions a and b again. This time you
are Taari', from Cairo.
3 What time of day would you greet people in
the following way:
a misaa' ilkheer
b SabaaH ilkheer
c ahlan wa sahlan
T*
4 Give appropriate replies to 3a, b, and c,
5 You are meeting shiriif for the first time.
a Say hallo and ask him his name,
b Now ask him where he's from.
6 You are meeting naahid for the first time.
a Say hallo and ask her her name,
b Now ask her where she is from.
7 You meet mu'nis, whom you already know.
a Say 'Good morning, mu'nis'.
b Ask him how he is.
c Ask him when you'll see him.
d When he suggests tomorrow, say 'I hope so'.
Mohamed AH Mosque, Cairo
Y1
20 Lishriin
waaHid wi tishriin 21
2 Food
and drink
Key expressions
fiih CaSiir?
is there any juice?
mafiish biira hina
there's no beer here
Candak 1
'eeh?
what have you (m) got?
Candik 1
what have you (f) got?
ilHisaab,
min faDlak
the bill, please
„ Caawiz
ana .
Cawza
1 (m)
want
1 <f)
iddiini ...
give me ...
tishrab
| 'eeh?
what will you (m) drink?
tishrabi
what will you (f) drink?
shukran
thank you
Cafwan;
ilCafw
not at all
Conversations
1 Something to drink
Waiter
Taari'
Waiter
Taari'
2 zeenab
Waiter
zeenab
Waiter
zeenab
Waiter
tishrab 'eeh?
ashrab shaay.
HaaDir.
shukran.
is in a cafe.
tishrabi 'eeh?
Candak 'eeh?
shaay walla 'ahwa walla Haaqa
sa'Ca?
'ahwa maZbuuT, min faDlak.
HaaDir.
3 Two coffees, a tea and water pipe.
Waiter
SabaaH ilkheer. ayy / khidma?
Taari’
SabaaH innuur. iddiini itneen 'ahwa
w waaHid shaay.
Waiter
(shouting out to kitchen) itneen
'ahwa, waaHid shaay!
Cook
HaaDir.
Taari '
(calling after the waiter ) wi
shiisha, min faDlak!
4 Many cafes don't sell alcoholic drinks ...
Taari'
Candak biira min faDlak?
Waiter
mafiish biira hina, ya beeh.
Taari'
shukran.
Waiter
ilCafw, ya beeh.
5 ..but some of them do.
Taari'
Candak biira?
Waiter
'aywa, Candi biira.
Taari'
iddiini talaata biira min faDlak.
Waiter
HaaDir.
Taari'
(later) ilHisaab, min faDlak.
Waiter
'aywa.
6 Asking
what juices there are.
zeenab
SabaaH ilkjneer .
Waiter
SabaaH innuur.
zeenab
Candak CaSiir 'eeh, min faDlak?
Waiter
fiih CaSiir burTu'aan, fiih CaSiir
gawaafa, fiih CaSiir manga, fiih
CaSiir farawla, fiih CaSiir lamuun.
zeenab
Candak grepfruut?
Waiter
la', CaSiir grepfruut mafiish.
zeenab
waaHid gawaafa, min faDlak.
Waiter
HaaDir.
7 Asking
what sandwiches they have ...
zeenab
SabaaH ilkheer.
Girl
SabaaH innuur.
22 itneen wi Cishriin
rr
rr
talaata w Cishriin 23
zeenab
tandik sandwitshaat 'eeh, min
faDlik?
Girl
tandi fuul wi Tatmiyya w beeD wi
kufta w kibda.
zeenab
tandik gibna?
Girl
la', maLandiish gibna.
zeenab
waaHid Tatmiyya min faDlik.
Girl
HaaDir.
8 ... and what soup they have.
Taari'
misaa' ilkheer.
Waiter
misaa' innuur.
Taari'
fiih shurba?
Waiter
'aywa, y afandim. fiih shurba.
Taari'
shurbit 'eeh?
Waiter
fiih shurbit khuDaar, shurbit baSal.
Taari'
iddiini shurbit baSal, min faDlak.
Waiter
HaaDir.
9 Ordering a complete meal.
kamaal
misaa' ilkheer.
Waiter
misaa' innuur, ahlan wa sahlan.
kamaal
shukran. ilminyu min faDlak.
Waiter
itfaDDal. itfaDDali ya madaam.
huda/kamaal
shukran.
huda
min faDlak, tawza waaHid samak
mashwi, wi waaHid baTaaTis, wi
waaHid sabaanikh.
kamaal
£.aawiz waaHid ruzz wi waaHid
firaakh wi waaHid bisilla, min
faDlak.
Waiter
Haaga kamaan?
kamaal
'aywa, itneen mayya matdaniyya
min faDlak.
Waiter
Later
HaaDir.
kamaal
ilHisaab min faDlak.
Waiter
itfaDDal.
kamaal
itfaDDal ... da talashaanak.
Waiter
shukran. mat a ssalaama.
Vocabulary
waaHid one
itneen two
talaata three
arba9a four
khamsa five
burTu'aan orange
gawaafa guava
manga mango
farawla strawberry
lamuun lemon
grepfruut grapefruit
minyu menu
sandwitsh sandwich
shurba soup
samak fish
firaakh chicken
mashwi grilled
ruzz rice
khuDaar vegetables
baTaaTis potatoes
bisilla peas
beeD eggs
fuul cooked beans
falaafil; tatmiyya deep-
fried cakes of chick
peas or beans
kufta meat balls
kibda liver
gibna cheese
baSal onion
taSiir juice
mayya (matdaniyya)
( mineral ) water
biira beer
'ahwa coffee
shaay tea
shiisha hubble bubble
Haaga thing, something
Haaga sa'ta something
cold
maZbuuT medium
sweet
ashrab / drink
tishrab you (m) drink
tishrabi you (fl drink
tandak? do you (m)
have?
mafiish there isn't/aren't
matandiish I haven't
ya beeh sir
y afandim sir
ya madaam madam
... walla or ...
ayy / khidma can / help
you? /don't mention it
(lit any service )
HaaDir certainly, at once
itfaDDal here you (m) are
itfaDDali here you (f) are
da talashaanak that's for
you (when tipping a
man I
Explanations
• 'Have'
is expressed not by a verb but by means of
Land- (with), plus a personal ending, 'me', 'you'
etc:
I have
you have
tandi
tandak (m)
tandik (f)
Ti
to
24 arbata w tishriin
khamsa w tishriin 25
eg Candak 'eeh? what have you ( m ) got?
Candak biira? do you have (any) beer?
• The same endings can be added to Calashaan
(for):
da Calashaanak 'that's for you' (eg when giving
a tip). To a woman: da Calashaanik
• 'There is/are...' is the invariable fiih:
fiih CaSiir? is there (any) juice?
fiih biira? is there (any) beer?
'aywa, fiih yes, there is
• 'Not'
Both fiih and Cand- are made negative by adding
ma sh:
Candi I have; maCandiish I haven't
fiih there is; mafiish there isn't
mafiish biira hina there's no beer here
• 'I want' is:
ana Caawiz (or Caayiz) (if you're a man)
ana Cawza (or Cayza) (if you're a woman)
Caawiz is an adjective and so takes the feminine
-a ending:
eg hiyya Cawza CaSiir she wants (some) juice
• ashrab I drink
tishrab you (m) drink
tishrabi you ( f I drink
When inviting someone to have a drink, say
tishrab 'eeh? (to a man) or tishrabi 'eeh? (to a
woman).
• You often add -i for the feminine:
itfaDDal, itfaDDali (lit kindly accept...)
This is used in any situation where you are
offering something politely to somebody. It can
26 sitta w Cishriin n
mean 'have a seat', 'please come in', 'have a
drink', 'please join us' and so on.
• Noun + noun
As in English, two nouns can come together,
one modifying the other: eg CaSiir lamuun
(lemon juice), mudiir bank (bank manager). But
notice the order is reversed in Arabic. If the first
noun ends in the feminine -a, this ending
changes to -it when another noun follows:
shurba soup, but shurbit baSal onion soup
shurbit 'eeh? what soup?
• More than one
A common way of forming the plural is by
adding -aat, as in sandwitsh, sandwitshaat.
The numbers from one to five are given in the
vocabulary on page 25; when ordering food and
drink, a number is used with the singular noun:
itneen biira two beers
itneen 'ahwa two coffees
• 'The'
Put il- before the noun:
Hisaab a bill; ilHisaab the bill
The 'I' of il in some cases forms a long consonant
with the following sound: issabaanikh - the
spinach' (not ilsabaanikh). (See Guide to
pronunciation, pi 1 ).
• Polite terms of address vary from country to
country. In Egypt, some of the commonest, to a
man, are ya beeh and y afandim; to a woman,
ya madaam.
• If you are inviting someone to make a choice,
the equivalent of '...or...?' is ...walla...?:
'ahwa walla shaay? coffee or tea?
sabta w Cishriin 27
TV
Worth knowing
Besides eating in restaurants and hotels, you may
want to eat at a snack bar, where you'll find
sandwiches, often made with flat pitta-type bread
(khubz baladi, or 'local bread') fried snacks like
falaafil, kebab, and fresh fruit juice.
Fast food eating places are increasingly popular in
the Middle East, and range from traditional
roadside kiosks to the modern international food
chains.
In some cake shops you can eat a delicious pastry
on the spot with a glass of iced water, or take it
with you.
Street cafes are for
sipping tea, coffee and
soft drinks at your
leisure; in areas not
much visited by
tourists they tend to
be patronised mainly
by men. There the
shiisha - the water
pipe or 'hubble bubble'
- is a common sight.
Islam forbids the consumption of alcohol and pork.
Animals are slaughtered according to Islamic law,
and the meat is then described as Halaal (literally
permitted ). Official attitudes to alcohol vary a
good deal from country to country, so it's best to
check before taking any alcohol with you.
Ramadan is the month when Moslems fast during
the hours of daylight, so it is generally polite not to
eat, drink or smoke in public places during these
hours.
If you order tea or coffee in a cafe, it will usually
be served black - the tea with lots of sugar.
Traditional 'Turkish' coffee can be maZbuuT
(medium sweet), saada (without sugar) or sukkar
ziyaada (very sweet).
Additional vocabulary
'akl food
faSulya butter beans
sukkar sugar
TamaaTim tomatoes
laban milk
gambari prawns, shrimps
lHaliib milk \
laHm meat *
malH salt
Hamaam pigeon
filfil pepper
Mdajaaj chicken \
talg ice
gazar carrots
khubz bread
shawirma spiced grilled meat
mezza hors d'oeuvres
nibiit wine
Hummus chick peas ( often
'izaaza bottle
served as a creamy dip)
aHmar red
TiHiina sesame seed paste
abyaD white
sSlaTa khaDra mixed salad
aiskriim ice-cream
makaroona macaroni for
mooz bananas
other pasta)
tuffaaH apples
bidingaan aubergines
mishmish apricots
tiin figs
Traditional oriental pastries often made with honey
and nuts include ba'laawa, basbuusa, kunaafa, and
'aTaayif - all of which may be served b il'ishTa -
with whipped cream.
* Words shown in square brackets are not Egyptian but
are in common use in other parts of the Arab World.
Exercises
1 Ask a waiter politely (ie say 'please') for the
following:
a an orange juice
b two beers
c a sandwich
28 tamanya w £.ishriin
YA
Y*
tista w tishriin 29
d a medium sweet coffee
e vegetable soup
f the bill
2 What would change if it were a waitress?
3 Ask whether the following are available, using
fiih:
a coffee
b mango juice
c onion soup
d rice
e sandwiches
4 Ask for the same items using Candak.
5 Think of questions or comments which might
have prompted the following replies:
a 'aywa, tandi sandwitshaat gibna.
b la', mafiish nibiit hina.
c la', maCandiish mayya maCdaniyya.
d HaaDir....itfaDDal ilHisaab.
e tafwan.
Using the additional vocabulary at the end of the
chapter try ordering a really elaborate meal!
r*
O Shopping
Key expressions
bi kam?
how much?
ishshanTa di
this/that bag
ilgamal da
this/that camel
(bi) Lishriin gineeh
(for) twenty pounds
mumkin
possible
mish mumkin
not possible
mumkin ashtiri?
can 1 buy?
mumkin ashuufha?
can 1 see it (fit
di'ii'a waHda
one moment
1 'aasif
(ana) 1 'asfa
(I'm) | sorry ^
1 sorry (f)
tandak Sanf 'aHsan?
have you got a better kind?
tandak ma'aas 'akbar?have you got a bigger size?
ghaali 'awi
very expensive
bi balaash
free (lit for nothing)
Conversations
1 Asking the price of a souvenir camel ...
Taari' min faDlak, bi kam ilgamal da?
Shopkeeper b itneen gineeh wi nuSS.
Taari' bi kam?
Shopkeeper itneen gineeh wi nuSS.
Taari' w ilkibiir?
Shopkeeper khamsa gineeh.
Taari' shukran.
Shopkeeper ilLafw.
n
30 talatiin
waaHid wi talatiin 31
2 ... a bag
Taari'
Shopkeeper
Taari'
Shopkeeper
Taari'
Shopkeeper
Taari'
Shopkeeper
Taari'
Shopkeeper
SabaaH ilkheer.
SabaaH innuur.
bi kam i shsh anTa di?
tishriin gineeh.
wi di?
itnaashar gineeh.
bi kam?
itnaashar gineeh.
shukran.
tafwan.
3 ... and a galabiyya.
Taari’ bi kam ilgallabiyya di?
Shopkeeper sabta gineeh wi nuSS.
Taari' w ilHamra di?
Shopkeeper w ilHamra di, bi tamanya gineeh.
Taari' shukran.
Shopkeeper ayy / khidma.
4 zeenab wants some postcards.
zeenab
Shopkeeper
zeenab
Shopkeeper
tandak kart buSTaal, min faDlak?
'aywa, tandi. itfaDDali.
bi kam ilkart?
bi tashar 'uruush.
zeenab < she chooses three) talaata min
faDlak.
Shopkeeper talatiin 'irsh, min faDlik.
zeenab tandak Tawaabit, min faDlak?
Shopkeeper la', 'aasif, matandiish.
zeenab shukran ... itfaDDal gineeh.
Shopkeeper itfaDDali khamsiin, sittiin, sabtiin.
zeenab shukran.
Shopkeeper mata ssalaama.
zeenab mat a ssalaama.
5 Can I buy stamps here?
Taari’ mumkin ashtiri Tawaabit hina?
Shopgirl 'aywa, mumkin.
Taari’ iddiini talat Tawaabit I ingiltira, min
faDlik.
Shopgirl HaaDir.
6 A film for the camera.
Taari'
Shopgirl
Taari’
Shopgirl
Taari’
Shopgirl
Taari'
Shopgirl
Taari’
Shopgirl
mumkin ashtiri film I ilkamera di?
mumkin ashuufha?
(handing it over) itfaDDali.
sitta w talatiin, walla arbata w
tishriin Suura?
sitta w talatiin mulawwan.
HaaDir. di'ii'a waHda. (she fetches
a film) itfaDDal. talaata gineeh wi
khamsa w sabtiin 'irsh.
itfaDDali.
shukran.
shukran. mata ssalaama.
mata ssalaama.
7 Sometimes you'll have to bargain ...
Customer issalaamu taleekum.
Shopkeeper taleekum issalaam.
Customer min faDlak, bi kam i shsh anTa di?
Shopkeeper bi tamanya w tishriin gineeh.
Customer la', mish mumkin. ghalya 'awi.
32 itneen wi talatiin
rr
rr
talaata w talatiin 33
Shopkeeper bi balaash talashaanik ...
tawzaaha bi kam?
Customer bi tishriin gineeh.
Shopkeeper la'! mumkin bi talaata w c ishriin.
Customer Tayyib. itfaDDal.
Shopkeeper shukran. mata ssalaama.
8 ... or ask for a better kind ...
Customer tandak Sanf 'aHsan?
Shopkeeper 'aywa, tandi. bass ghaali.
Customer tandak Sanf 'aHsan?
Shopkeeper la', da 'aHsan Sanf.
9 ... or a larger size ...
Customer tandak ma'aas 'akbar?
Shopkeeper £andi. ma'aas kam?
Customer itneen w arbitiin.
10 ... or something cheaper.
Customer fiih Haaga 'arkhaS?
Shopgirl la', 'asfa, mafiish.
Vocabulary
bi for (in prices), with
gallabiyya (pi -aat)
galabiyya
gineeh pound
'irsh (p/ 'uruush) piastre
kart (p/ kuruut) buSTaal
postcard
Taabic (pi Tawaabic )
stamp
nuSS half
'aHmar (f Hamra) red
kcimera camera
film (pi aflaam) film
mulawwan coloured,
in colour
di'ii'a minute, moment
rt
Suura (pi Suwar) picture
ghaali (f ghalya) expensive
li to, for
'awi very, too
ashtiri / buy
bass but, only
'aHsan better, best
rikhiiS cheap
'arkhaS cheaper, cheapest
kibiir big
'akbar bigger, biggest
Sanf (pi 'aSnaaf) kind,
type
ma'aas size
Tayyib ... OK, well
now ...
34 arbata w talatiin
Numbers
6 sitta (before plural noun - sitt)
7 sabta (before plural noun - sabat)
8 tamanya (before plural noun - taman)
9 tista (before plural noun - tisat )
1 0 £.£shara (before plural noun - tashar)
1 1 Hidaashar 1 6 sittaashar
12 itnaashar 17 sabaCtaashar
1 3 talattaashar 1 8 tamantaashar
14 arbattaashar 19 tisattaashar
1 5 khamastaashar
20 S. ishriin 50 khamsiin 80 tamaniin
30 talatiin 60 sittiin 90 tistiin
40 arbitiin 70 sabtiin 100 miyya
NB As with 6-10 above, talaata becomes talat and
arbata, arbaC before a plural noun.
Explanations
• To ask the price of an object:
ilgallabiyya? the galabiyya?
bi kam ilgamal? how much is the camel?
i shsh anTa? the bag?
or: ilgallabiyya bi kam?
The answer will be:
gineeh
£1
(bi) itneen gineeh
£2
khamsa gineeh
£5 and so on
• kam? alone is used before a noun to mean 'how
many?' or 'how much?', referring to quantities.
The noun is always singular:
kam kart? how many cards?
kam sandwitsh? how many sandwiches?
kam sukkar? how much sugar?
• Adjectives have to add an -a to agree with
feminine pronouns:
ana/inta/huwwa kwayyis
TO
khamsa w talatiin 35
ana/inti/hiyya kwayyisa
They also agree with feminine nouns.
ilgamal (m)
ilgamal kibiir
i shsh anTa (f)
i shsh anTa kibiira
the camel
the camel is big
the bag
the bag is big
Not all adjectives make the feminine like
kwayyisa. We show other types like this:
'aHmar (f Hamra) red
ghaali (f ghalya) expensive
• To say 'a big bag' or 'an expensive galabiyya':
shanTa kibiira
gallabiyya ghalya
• To say 'the big bag' or 'the expensive
galabiyya', add il- to the adjective as well as the
noun but remember the rules given on pi 1:
i shsh anTa ilkibiira
ilgallabiyya ilghalya
• 'This' or 'that'
Make the noun definite (by putting il- first), then
add da to a masculine, di to a feminine noun:
ilgamal da this/that camel
ilgallabiyya di this/that galabiyya
If it's clear what you're talking about, da or di
can be used alone. So can any adjective:
da bi kam? how much is that (mi?
di ghalya! that (f) is expensive!
w ilkibiir and the big one (mi?
w ilHamra? and the red one (f)7
• To make a 'verbless' statement negative, add
mish as follows:
ana min landan ana mish min landan
huwwa hina huwwa mish hina
da ghaali da mish ghaali
36 sitta w talatiin «•
• One way of forming plurals is to add -aat (see
p27):
sandwitsh sandwitshaat
Often nothing is added, but the pattern of
vowels in the word is rearranged (a bit like
English 'mouse, mice'),
kart (a card) kuruut (cards)
'irsh (a piastre) 'uruush (piastres)
The pattern used for Taabit (a stamp) is
Tawaabit.
There are about half a dozen major patterns (see
Reference section p71-72). You can't
necessarily predict the plural, so we give the
main ones in the vocabulary lists like this:
film (p/ aflaam)
• The numbers 1 - 5 were given on p25; 6-100
are given on p35.
waaHid (one) has the feminine form waHda. eg
di'ii'a waHda one moment
To say '24', '35', etc, Arabic uses 'four and
twenty', 'five and thirty' etc:
arbata w C ishriin : 24 khamsa w talatiin: 35
It's useful to divide the numbers into two sets:
up to ten, and eleven upwards.
The numbers 2-10 are followed by a plural
noun ( except when ordering food and drink),
and the final -a of the number is dropped:
talaata (on its own), but
talat TawaabiC three stamps
tashar 'uruush ten piastres
Numbers from eleven upwards don't change and
are followed by a singular noun:
talatiin 'irsh thirty piastres
arbata w ishriin Suura twenty-four pictures
• Basic units of length and weight are invariable:
mitr a metre
khamsa mitr five metres
rv
sabta w talatiin 37
kiilu a kilo
sitta kiilu six kilos
The same applies to gineeh (the Egyptian £):
gineeh £1
talaata gineeh £3
• To say 'three and a half pounds' (or kilos etc)
add wi nuSS after the noun:
talaata gineeh wi nuSS; khamsa kiilu wi nuSS
etc
• To say 'a kilo of
kiilu ilburTu'aan a kilo of oranges
nuSS kiilu issamak half a kilo of fish
khamsa kiilu ilbaTaaTis five kilos of potatoes
• mumkin? on its own means 'is it possible?', 'can
I?', 'may I?', 'can we?', etc. The answer will be:
'aywa, mumkin or
la', mish mumkin
• To say 'I buy' and 'I see':
ashtiri I buy
ashuuf I see
Add mumkin (is it possible?) to ask 'can I
(ana) «
mumkin
ashtiri?
ashuuf?
can I buy?
can I see?
• -ha ('it' for feminine nouns) or -u (for masculine
nouns) may be added to the end:
mumkin ashuufha? can I see it? (eg ilkSmera)
mumkin ashuufu? can I see it? (eg ilgamal)
NB In conversation 7, the shopkeeper says
tawzaaha bi kam? (how much do you want to
pay? - lit you want it for how much?) referring
to i shsh anta.
• Good, better, best ...
A special pattern is used for the comparative
38 tamanya w talatiin »•*
and superlative of adjectives:
kibiir (big) 'akbar (bigger, biggest)
rikhiiS (cheap) 'arkhaS (cheaper, cheapest)
kitiir (a lot) 'aktar (more, most) etc
kwayyis (good) has the special comparative
'aHsan (better, best). So:
iSSanf da kwayyis this kind is good
iSSanf da 'aHsan that kind is better
The comparative follows the noun:
fiih Sanf 'aHsan? is there a better kind?
The superlative precedes it:
da 'aHsan Sanf that's the best kind
Fortunately these comparatives don't change in
the feminine!
Additional vocabulary
fluus money
gazma (pi gizam) shoe
shibshib slippers
kanaka coffee pot
sandal (pi sanaadil)
sandal
sanduu' box
'amiiS (p/ 'umSaan)
shirt
'alam pen, pencil
fustaan (p/ fasatiin)
dress
Hilw beautiful, fine
'umaash material
sigaara (pi sagaayir)
' uTn cotton
cigarette
Hariir silk
kibriit matches
gild leather
raTI pound, half a kilo
'ufTaan {pi 'afaTiin)
kaftan
Sughayyar small
banTaloon trousers
'aSghar smaller, smallest
Worth knowing
Currencies
Besides the Egyptian gineeh, other
Arab World are the riyaal,
the dinaar, the liira
and the dirham.
tista w talatiin 39
Bargaining
This is the accepted practice in the Middle East, at
least when it comes to buying souvenirs. It is an
amiable and often leisurely process - pursued over
coffee or tea if a large item like a carpet is involved
- but no offence is taken if you decide to 'think it
over'. In countries where taxis don't have meters
(or the meters tend not to work!), it's just as well
to fix the price before you get in.
The galabiyya - a loose cotton
gown ideal for hot climates - is
the traditional form of dress for
men in most Arab countries. It
is usually simple in design -plain
or striped - though more
elaborate and brilliantly-
coloured galabiyyas are
produced for tourists. In Egypt,
businessmen and office
workers will probably wear
European clothes rather than
the galabiyya. In many other
Arab countries though, it is the
most usual form of dress for
men of all classes.
The kaftan, a more formal
version of the galabiyya, is
often a heavier silk/cotton
mixture - or wool for the winter
- and is worn by both men and
women.
Exercises
1 What is the difference in meaning between
these four sentences?
a shanTa kibiira
b i shsh anTa ilkibiira
c i shsh anTa kibiira
d i shsh anTa di kibiira
2 Ask a shopkeeper 'Have you got..., please?':
a any postcards
b any stamps
c a colour film
d a large bag
e a red galabiyya
3 Ask him if you can see the following:
a a galabiyya
b that camera
c a larger size
d a cheaper kind
4 Ask a shopkeeper the price of the following
(checking your vocabulary from Chapter 2):
a a kilo of oranges
b half a kilo of lemons
c two kilos of banana?
d half a kilo of sugar
5 A shopkeeper gives the price of various items:
tell him 'That is very expensive', using da or di as
appropriate.
a ilgallabiyya bi talatiin gineeh.
b ilkart bi sittiin 'irsh.
c mitr il'umaash bi khamsa gineeh.
d i shsh anTa bi itneen wi tishriin gineeh.
6 Ask him if there is:
a a bigger bag
b a smaller dress
c a cheaper camera
d a better kind
*• i\
40 arbiLiin
waaHid w arbitiin 41
4 In the
hotel
Key expressions
tandak 'ooDa?
do you have a room?
fiih mayya sukhna?
is there hot water?
tandi Hagz
I've got a reservation
kam leela?
how many nights?
bi kam illeela?
how much a night?
30 gineeh f ilyoom
£30 a day
'ooDa nimra ...
room number ...
issaata kam?
what time is it?/at what
time?
issaata sabta
(it's) seven o'clock
mumkin adfat
ilHisaab?
can 1 pay the bill?
mumkin atmil tilifoon?
can 1 make a phone call?
mumkin aghayyar
can 1 change some
dolaraat?
dollars?
tala Ivimiin/shshimaal
on the right/the left
imDi hina
sign here
Conversations
1 Taari' is booking a hotel room.
Taari'
misaa' ilkheer.
Clerk
misaa' innuur.
Taari'
tandak 'ooDa, min faDlak?
Clerk
di'ii'a waHda. (checks in
register) 'aywa fiih. kam leela?
Taari'
leela waHda. fiih mayya sukhna?
Clerk
'aywa, wi fiih banyu wi tilifoon
wi tilivizyoon f il'ooDa.
Taari'
bi kam il'ooDa?
Clerk
talatiin gineeh f ilyoom.
Taari'
iddiini 'ooDa, min faDlak.
Clerk
HaaDir.
tr
42 itneen w arbitiin
2 zeenab wants a room for two nights.
zeenab tandak 'ooDa, min faDlak?
Clerk di'ii'a waHda. Hooks in register)
kam leela?
zeenab lelteen, min faDlak.
Clerk 'aywa fiih.
zeenab tayza 'ooDa bi Hammaam.
Clerk fiih, mawguud.
zeenab bi kam?
Clerk tamanya w arbitiin gineeh.
zeenab fiih maTtam hina?
Clerk 'aywa, fiih maTtam f pointing )
hinaak.
zeenab ilfiTaar issaata kam?
Clerk min sabta I t^shara.
3 If you already have a reservation ...
Taari' ana tandi Hagz hina, min faDlak?.
Clerk ismak 'eeh?
Taari' Taari' ilbaguuri.
Clerk 'aywa, maZbuuT.
Taari' shukran.
Clerk da ilmuftaaH. il'ooDa suttumiyya w
waaHid. il'asanSiir 'uddaam tala
lyimiin.
Taari’ shukran. ilfiTaar issaata kam?
Clerk ilfiTaar min issaata sabta I issaata
tSshara, hinaak f ilmaTtam.
Taari’ shukran.
Clerk iltafw.
4 Asking for the bill.
Taari' mumkin adfat ilHisaab, min faDlak?
Clerk mumkin. di'ii'a waHda.
Taari’ shukran.
5 You may not always be lucky ...
Man SabaaH ilkheer.
Clerk SabaaH innuur.
£f
talaata w arbitiin 43
Man min faDlak, fiih 'ooDa faDya?
Clerk tandak Hagz?
Man la', matandiish.
Clerk 'aasif, il'utiil malyaan.
6 And you may have to sign the register ...
Clerk imDi hina min faDlak. iktib ismak w
ism baladak.
Man bi kull/ suruur.
Clerk itfaDDal ilmuftaaH. 'ooDa nimra
miteen wi talatiin, f iddoor ittaani.
Man shukran.
7 Can I call London?
Man mumkin akallim landan min hina?
Clerk mumkin. ittilifoon hina tala
shsh imaal.
Man shukran.
8 Changing money.
Man mumkin aghayyar miyya w
khamsiin dolaar?
Clerk 'aywa, Tabtan. ilbasbuur, min
faDlak.
Man mumkin aghayyar shikaat siyaHiyya
kamaan?
Clerk 'aywa, dolaraat kamaan?
Man la', istirliini.
9 Making a phone call.
Man mumkin atmil tilifoon min hina?
Clerk bi kull/ suruur.
Man (dials) ... 'alo? ... 'aywa, ya
maHmuud! izzayyak inta? ...
ilHamdu lillaah ... ana fi 'utiil
shahriZaad, 'ooDa nimra miteen wi
talatiin. ..Tayyib, bukra in
sha'allaa h. tiSbaH tala kheer.
44 arbata w arbitiin $$
Vocabulary
'ooDa (pi 'owaDI room
malyaan full
leela (pi layaali) night
iktib write
sukhna hot
imDi sign
banyu bath
balad town, country
tilifoon telephone
nimra number
tilivizyoon television
door floor
yoom (pi ayyaam) day
taani (/tanya) second
Hammaam bathroom
akallim / speak to
mawguud there is
aghayyar / change
maTtam (pi maTaatim)
dolaar (pi dolaraat) dollar
restaurant
T abtan of course
hinaak there
basbuur passport
fiTaar breakfast
shiik (pi -aat) siyaHiyya
saata hour, time
travellers cheque
Hagz reservation
istirliini sterling
maZbuuT right, exact
atmil tilifoon / make a
muftaaH key
phone call
'asanSiir lift
bi kull/ suruur certainly (lit
'uddaam opposite, in front
with all pleasure)
tala on
tiSbaH(i) tala kheer good
yimiin right
night
shimaal left
siriir bed
adfat / pay
'aakul / eat
faaDi (/ faDya) empty.
dushsh shower
free
Explanations
bathroom
shower
hot water
two beds
To say you've got a reservation:
(ana) tandi Hagz
You'll be told the price per day:
uphriin g j nee h f ilyoom
talatiin a 1
khamsa w arbitiin 45
• To ask for a room:
tandak 'ooDa?
To specify:
Hammaam
du shsh
mayya sukhna
sirireen
'ooDa bi
• One ...
waaHid (m) waHda (f)
eg yoom waaHid leela waHda
• Two ...
itneen gineeh £2
itneen biira two beers
But most nouns have a special 'dual' form in
which -een is added to the singular:
yoom day yomeen two days
siriir bed sirireen two beds
If the noun is feminine, drop the -a and add
-teen:
leela night lelteen two nights
di'ii'a moment di'i'teen two moments
The dual of 'hundred' (miyya) is miteen.
• Hundreds
On p76 of the reference section, you will find
the forms taken by numbers 3 - 9 when they
precede ‘hundred'. In the hotel (conversation 3)
the clerk says suttumiyya (six hundred).
• To ask the time:
issaata kam? (lit the hour how much?) has
two meanings: 'what time is it?' and 'at what
time?'
To ask 'what time is .,.?':
ilfiTaar issaata kam? what time is breakfast?
• To tell the time:
I talaata
issaaCa
khamsa (it's)
sitta w nuSS
three o'clock
five o'clock
half past six
To say 'from ... to ...':
min issaata sabta I issaata tashara
46 sitta w arbitiin
• Directions
(ish)shimaal (the) left
(il)yimiin (the) right
They often come after tala ('on'):
tala
lyimiin
shshimaal
• 'uddaam (in front, opposite)
It can be used on its own or take one of the
pronouns:
'uddaamak in front of you lm)
'uddaamik in front of you ff)
'uddaamha in front of her
• Verbs
More examples of 'I ...'
(ana)
adfat
aakul
aghayyar
at mil
akallim
pay
eat
change
make, do
call (lit speak to)
The above are all in the first person (I) and so all
begin with a-. To make the second person (you),
change the a- to ti-:
tishrab 'eeh?
I tidfat?
I tighayyar?
NB mumkin taakul hina
mumkin
what are you drinking?
can you pay?
can you change?
you can eat here
These are used when talking to a man. If talking
to a woman, add a final -i:
tishrabi 'eeh?
tidfati?
tighayyari?
NB mumkin takli hina
mumkin
To tell someone to do something (the
'imperative'), the initial t- is dropped:
iktib (ismak) write (your name) (to a man)
iktibi (ismik) write (your name) (to a woman)
sabta w arbitiin 47
iddiini (give me) is another imperative of this
kind.
• Polite phrases
Apart from the phrases you are now familiar
with, like min faDlak (please), shukran (thank
you) and so on, you will also hear bi ku 1 1 / suruur
(certainly) - an even politer version of HaaDir!
In conversation 9, Taari' says tiSbaH tala kheer
(good night), which shows he's speaking to a
man. To a woman, he'd have said tiSbaHi tala
kheer. It literally means 'may the morning find
you well'.
Additional vocabulary
Ighurfa room ]
shaghghaal working
Igawaaz issafar passport \
mish shaghghaal not working
fuuTa [pi fuwaT) towel
b ilfiTaar including breakfast
niDiif dean
il'ooDa b ilfiTaar bed and
wisikh dirty
breakfast
haadi quiet
istiqbaal reception
dawsha noise
doorit mayya lavatory
taTlaan out of order, not
twalett lavatory
working
takyiif hawa air conditioning
ittilifoon taTlaan the phone's
khidma service
not working
t^shara f ilmiyya 10%
Worth knowing
Information on accommodation, including up-to-
date lists of hotels of various categories, can
usually be obtained from the National Tourist
Office of the country you are going to visit. This
may not include much on the cheaper end of the
market; if you want to live really simply, ask
around on your arrival. Taxi drivers in the Middle
East, as elsewhere, are usually invaluable sources
of information.
iA
Exercises
1 You are booking into a hotel; check whether
there is:
a a bathroom
b a shower
c a telephone
d hot water
2 Now complain that the first three are not
working (taTlaan) and there's no hot water!
3 Ask whether you can:
a pay the bill
b make a phone call
c change some dollars
4 You want a single room for two nights; fill in
your part of the conversation that follows,
remembering to ask how much it costs!
Clerk SabaaH ilkheer.
You
Clerk ayy / khidma?
You
Clerk 'aywa, fiih. bi siriir waaHid walla bi
sirireen?
You
Clerk kam leela?
You
Clerk fiih 'ooDa Hilwa f iddoor ittaani.
itfaDDal ilmuftaaH.
* You
Clerk tishriin gineeh bass.
\
48 tamanya w arbitiin
tista w arbitiin 49
5
Out and
about
Key expressions
il'utiil feen?
where is the hotel?
feen il'utiil?
'awwil
shaarit
first 1 .
street
taani
second 1
'urayyib (min hina)
near (here)
bi9iid (min hina)
far (from here)
laazim taakhud taksi
you (m) must take a taxi
Caawiz aruuH ilharam
1 want to go to the
pyramids
shuwayya
a little, quite
kitiir
a lot
tazkara 1 iskindriyya
a ticket to Alexandria
ddraga
'uula
first .
class
tanya
second
raayiH/raayiH gayy
single/return
raSiif nimra kam?
which platform?
feen 'a'rab
where's the nearest
agzakhaana?
chemist's?
imshi tala Tool go straight on
da 'aTr iskindriyya? is this the Alexandria
train?
2 Asking your way to Liberation Square.
Taari'
min faDlik, feen midaan ittaHriir?
Passerby
'awwil shaarit ... ( correcting her-
self) la', taani shaarit tala lyimiin.
Taari'
shukran.
Passerby
tafwan.
3 Is Khan El
Khalili nearby?
Taari’
min faDlak, khan ilkhaliili 'urayyib
min hina?
Passerby
la', bitiid shuwayya. laazim taakhud
taksi.
Taari'
shukran.
Passerby
tafwan.
4 Where is the nearest chemist's?
Tourist
min faDlak, feen 'a'rab 'agzakhaana?
Passerby
'awwil shaarit tala shshimaal.
Tourist
shukran.
5 Calling a taxi ...
mu'nis
taksi! taksi! taawiz aruuH ilharam.
Driver
bi khamsa gineeh.
mu'nis
khamsa gineeh? kitiir! arbata?
Driver
mumkin. itfaDDal.
mu'nis
shukran
Conversations
6 ... and directing the taxi driver.
1 Asking for a free map of the town.
Driver
mu'nis
feen il'utiil?
imshi tala Tool ...
Taari'
min faDlak?
Driver
(drives on) wi dilwa'ti?
Clerk
'aywa?
mu 'nis
shimaal hina ...
Taari'
tandak khariiTa 1 ilqaahira?
Driver
shimaal feen? shimaal hina?
Clerk
'aywa.
mu 'nis
'aywa. wi batdeen taani shaarit
Taari'
Clerk
mumkin aakhud waHda?
itfaDDal.
Driver
tala lyimin.
hina?
Taari’
shukran.
mu'nis
'aywa. shukran.
Clerk
tafwan.
Driver
iltafw.
50 khamsiin
e\
waaHid wi khamsiin
7 Finding out about planes to Aswan.
Taari misaa' ilkheer.
Assistant misaa' innuur.
Taari' ana laayiz aruuH 'aSwaan.
Assistant imta?
Taari’ bald bukra.
Assistant bald bukra? litneen.
Taari' 'aywa.
Assistant di'ii'a waHda. (looking in timetable)
fiih Tayyaara issaala tamanya wi
khamsa w arbiliin iSSubH, wi
Tayyaara issaa9a itnaashar wi
nuSS iDDuhr.
Taari' shukran. bi kam ittazkara?
Assistant raayiH walla raayiH gayy?
Taari’ raayiH gayy.
Assistant raayiH gayy? sabla w arbiliin
gineeh.
8 Buying a train ticket.
Taari’ tazkara I iskindriyya min faDlak.
Clerk dciraga 'uula walla d£raga tanya?
Taari' d^raga 'uula.
Clerk dciraga 'uula tamanha khamsa
gineeh.
Taari' (giving him the money) itfaDDal.
raSiif nimra kam?
Clerk raSiif nimra arbala.
Taari' shukran.
Clerk lafwan.
9 Checking that it's the right train.
Taari' min faDlak?
Passerby 'aywa?
Taari’ da 'aTr iskindriyya?
Passerby 'aywa. da 'aTr iskindriyya.
Taari’ shukran.
Passerby lafwan.
or
52 itneen wi khamsiin
10 zeenab is going to the Egyptian museum in
Cairo.
zeenab
min faDlak!
Passerby
'aywa?
zeenab
ilmatHaf feen?
Passerby
imshi lala Tool, wi taani shaaril
lala lyimiin.
zeenab
shukran.
Passerby
Later
lafwan.
zeenab
bi kam ittazkara, min faDlak?
Attendant
tazkara bi talaata gineeh.
zeenab
iddiini tazkarteen.
Attendant
itneen ... sitta gineeh.
Vocabulary
khariiTa (I ilqaahira) haram pyramids
map (of Cairo) lala Tool straight on
midaan square dilwa'ti now
midaan ittaHriir Liberation baldeen later, then
Square bald bukra the day after
'awwil (f 'uula) first tomorrow
shaaril (pi shawaaril) litneen Monday
street Tayyaara (pi Tayyaraat)
khan ilkhaliili Khan El aeroplane
Khalili (bazaar area of SubH morning
Cairo) Duhr noon
laazim (it is) necessary bald iDDuhr afternoon
taksi (pi taksiyyaat) taxi tazkara (pi tazaakir) ticket
'a'rab nearest dciraga class
'agzakhaana chemist's taman price
aruuH / go raSiif platform
'aTr train
Explanations
• To ask 'where is ...?':
il'utiil feen? or
feen il'utiil?
or
talaata w khamsiin 53
• Near or far
'urayyib (min) near (to)
bitiid (min) far (from)
da 'urayyib min hina? is that near here?
da biCiid min il'utiil? is that far from the hotel?
• Nearer and nearest
The key word is 'a'rab.
'a'rab 'agzakhaana - the nearest chemist
(adjective first), but
fiih 'agzakhaana 'a'rab min il'utiil? - is there
a chemist nearer to the hotel? (adjective
second).
• First and second
m f
1st 'awwil 'uula
2nd taani tanya
You'll hear the masculine versions when you're
being told which street to take:
'awwil s h aar i' I lyimiin 1st on the right
taani — ^ I tala shsh imaal 2nd on the left
and the feminine versions when you're asked if
you want to travel 1st or 2nd class (notice that
here they follow the noun):
ddraga 'uula walla ddraga tanya?
• The 'I' and 'you' forms of 'go' and 'take' are:
aakhud I take aruuh I go
taakhud you (m) take tiruuH you (m) go
takhdi you (f) take tiruuHi you (f) go
Any of these forms can follow mumkin:
mumkin aakhud waHda? can I take one?
'aywa, mumkin taakhud waHda yes, you can
take one
The imperatives of these are:
khud! (to a man) take!
khudi! (to a woman)
54 arbata w khamsiin
of
ruuH! (to a man) ]
ruuHi! (to a woman) 9
The other verb 'go' which you'll hear in street
directions (meaning 'go on') is:
amshi I go
timshi you (m and f) go
imshi! go! (m and f)
imshi tala Tool! go straight on!
• To say 'must':
use laazim (it is necessary), which is invariable
and works like mumkin (see p38):
laazim taakhud taksi you must take a taxi
laazim tiruuH il'utiil you must go t'o the
hotel
• Caawiz and tawza ('want') also work like
mumkin, except that there are separate
masculine and feminine forms:
I want to ...
Caawiz atmil tilifoon
tawza aruuH 'aSwaan
You want to .../do you want to ...?
taawiz tishrab 'ahwa? (to a man)
tawza tiruuHi ilharam? (to a woman)
• More times and dates
To talk about fractions of the hour, say nuSS
(half), rubC (quarter) and tilt (third, ie twenty
minutes):
issaaCa talaata w nuSS it's [or at) half past
three
issaaCa tamanya w rubC it's (or at) quarter past
eight
issaata itneen wi tilt it's (or at) two twenty
If minutes are referred to, the ordinary numbers
are used:
issaaCa waHda w Ldshara ten past one
oo
khamsa w khamsiin 55
To say 'a quarter to or 'ten to use ilia
(less):
issaa^a arbaCa ilia rubL a quarter to four
issaat.a talaata ilia tSshara/khamsa ten/five to
three
Days of the week are given on p74-75, together
with the months.
yoom litneen (lit 'day two' of the Muslim week)
is Monday. Often yoom is omitted: litneen.
Days of the month are simple: the appropriate
number is used before the name of the month:
khamastaashar fibraayir (on) the 1 5th February
sitta mayyu (on) the 6th May
• In chapter 3, a girl said mumkin ashuufha? (can
I see it?), talking about the camera.
In this chapter, at the station the ticket clerk
says tamanha khamsa gineeh (lit its cost is £5).
The feminine -ha shows he's talking about
tazkara (ticket) - another feminine noun.
Additional vocabulary
muwaSalaat transport
maHaTTa station, stop
maHaTTit il'aTr railway
station
'utubiis {pi 'utubisaat) bus
maHaTTit il'utubiis bus stop
darabiyya car
Isayyaara, pi sayyaraat carl
b il'aTr by train
b il'utubiis by bus
b ildarabiyya by car
sawwaa' driver
maTaar airport
asaafir / travel, leave
badri early
wakhri late
maftuuH open
ma'fuul closed
maktab ilbariid post office
maktab SiyaaHa tourist
office
'ism buliis police station
mustashfa hospital
sifaara embassy
suu' market, bazaar
Worth knowing
Most towns and cities in the Middle East have a
'bazaar' area, part of which may specialise in
tourist souvenirs, but where you will also find
whole streets devoted to textiles, carpets, gold,
jewellery, household goods, herbs and spices, and
so on. Like Khan El Khalili in Cairo and the
Hamidiyya bazaar in Damascus, they are often at
the heart of the old city, by the walls of the
earliest mosques and palaces. In North Africa the
old part part of the city, the 'medina', is usually a
maze of narrow lanes, surrounded by the original
medieval walls.
Preferred modes of transport vary from country to
country. The system of sharing taxis, especially
between towns, is common; they generally operate
between fixed points and you change to 3 'local'
taxi on your arrival. It's best to agree beforehand
56 sitta w khamsiin
on
ov
sabta w khamsiin 57
on taxi fares, and to make it clear in advance if, for
example, you want the driver to wait for you and
then bring you back, with the words mumkin
tistanna hinaak, min faDlak? (can you wait there,
please?).
There is not a tradition of hitchhiking in the Middle
East, and some countries actively discourage it. In
any case, buses are extremely cheap and a very
good way of meeting people.
The Egyptian Museum (ilmatHaf ilmaSri) in Cairo
houses the world's most important collection of
Egyptian antiquities dating back to the earliest
civilisations. The collection includes monuments of
the pharaohs, statues and jewellery, the treasure
from the tomb of Tutankhamun and one of the
great artistic masterpieces of all time - the gold
mask of Tutankhamun.
1 Tell someone T want
a to take a taxi
b to go to the pyramids
c to go to the hotel
d to go to the museum
e a ticket to Aswan
2 Tell a man 'You must
a take a taxi
b see the pyramids
c pay the bill
d go to the chemist's
3 Now say the same things to a woman.
4 Tell the taxi driver to:
a go straight on
b turn left
c take the first street on the right
5 You want to buy a first class return train
ticket to Aswan. Fill in your part of the
conversation.
Clerk ayy / khidma? taawiz tiruuH feen?
You
Clerk dciraga 'uula walla ddraga tanya?
You
Clerk raayiH walla raayiH gayy?
You
c,erk tazkara dSraga 'uula tamanha sitta
gineeh.
You
Clerk shukran.
6 What times are being given here?
a issaata khamsa w nuSS
b issaaLa itneen wi rubt
c issaata tdshara w tilt
d issaata talaata ilia khamsa
e issaat a waHda ilia rubt
58 tamanya w khamsiin
OA
o*
tista w jchamsiin 59
6 Business
and pleasure
Key expressions
ilmudiir mawguud?
mish kida?
batkallim CSrabi
a'addimlak
furSa saCiida
tandi macaad (maCa)
kallimni
sharraftuuna
nawwartu beetna
mumkin awaSSalku?
maCa 'alf salaama
is the manager in?
isn't it?/isn't that so?
I speak Arabic
let me introduce you to
pleased to meet you (lit
a happy occasion)
I have an appointment
(with)
ring me
you have honoured us
you have honoured us
can I give you (pi) a lift?
goodbye (lit with a
thousand farewells)
Conversations
1 Making an appointment by phone.
Secretary
kaamil
Secretary
Director
kaamil
Director
kaamil
'alo?
'alo? min faDlak, ilmudiir
mawguud?
'aywa, mawguud. issayyid kaamil,
mish kida? di'ii'a waHda (she puts
him through).
'aywa ya sayyid kaamil. ayy /
khidma?
mumkin ashuufak batd bukra?
Candi mataad iSSubH. mumkin
ashuufak issaata talaata.
Tayyib. in sha'allaah. 'alfi shukr.
2 zeenab asked people in a hotel which
languages they spoke. First, two girls ...
zeenab inti bititkallimi lughaat 'eeh, min
faDlik?
Girl ana batkallim C£rabi w ingiliizi
shuwayya.
Girl ana batkallim t^rabi, batkallim
ingiliizi shuwayya, mish kitiir.
zeenab bititkallimi faransaawi?
Girl la'.
zeenab bititkallimi almaani?
Girt la'.
zeenab t£rabi bass?
Girl tcirabi w ingiliizi shuwayya.
... then a man
zeenab inta bititkallim lughaat 'eeh?
Man ana batkallim t£rabi w ingiliizi.
zeenab bititkallim ingiliizi kwayyis walla
nuSS nuSS walla shuwayya?
Man shuwayya shuwayya!
3 Being introduced to someone at a party.
kaamil
Hostess
kaamil
Hostess
Dr saami
misaa' ilkheer.
misaa' innuur ... ahlan wa sahlan ...
itfaDDalu ... sharraftuuna.
shukran.
ya duktuur saami, a'addimlak
ilmuhandis kaamil Hasan, zimiili f
i shsh irka.
ahlan wa sahlan ... furSa satiida.
itsharrafna.
4 Being offered a drink.
Hostess
leela
Hostess
kaamil
tishrabu 'eeh ya gamaata? fiih
kull/ Haaga.
ashrab taSiir lamuun min faDlik.
w inta ya kaamil?
ashrab biira min faDlik.
60 sittiin
V I H
waaHid wi sittiin 61
- Are you happy in Cairo?
Host
inta mabSuuT fi maSr?
kaamil
aywa, mabSuuT 'awi, innaas
luTaaf giddan.
Host
w inti ya madaam?
leela
mabSuuTa 'awi, ilHamdu lillaah.
bass ilgaww Harr shuwayya, mish
kida?
Dr saami
kaamil
Hostess
tandi sayyaara. mumkin
awaSSalku?
la , shukran. ilhutiil 'urayyib min
hina.
mata ssalaama! mata 'alf /
salaama!
Vocabulary
6 Telling
kaamil
Host
kaamil
Host
kaamil
someone your plans.
tandi mataad mata maHmuud
makkaawi bukra. titrafu?
'aywa, raagil laTiif giddan.
ilmataad issaata kam?
issaata khamsa w nuSS.
inta w huwwa bass?
la', ana w issayyid aHmad khaalid.
raagil 'atmaal kuweeti.
7 Dinner is served!
Hostess
leela
Hostess
CaSiir taani, ya madaam?
la', shukran, kifaaya kida.
haniyyan ... il'akl gaahiz, ya
gamaata! itfaDDalu.
8 Asking
kaamil
Dr saami
someone to ring you.
min faDlak, ya duktuur, kallimni
yoom ilkhamiis iSSubH. nimrit
tilifooni f ilbeet khamsa sabta
talaata waaHid Sifr itneen. wi
tilifoon ilmaktab, arbata sitta
tamanya khamsa waaHid waaHid.
Tayyib, in sha'allaah.
9 And farewells.
kaamil Hafla mumtaaza
Hostess
, ya madaam.
tislam ideeki. tiSbaHu tala kheer.
tiSbaHu tala kheer.
62 itneen wi sittiin
IT
mawguud in, present
sayyid Mr
macaad appointment
'alf a thousand
bititkallim(i) you speak
batkallim / speak
t-Srabi Arabic
ingiliizi English
faransaawi French
almaani German
nuSS nuSS so so
zimiil {pi zamaayil)
colleague
shirka {pi sharikaat)
company
ya gamaaca! everybody
kull/ Haaga everything
mabSuuT pleased, happy
naas people
laTiif {pi luTaaf)
pleasant, kind
giddan very
gaww weather
Harr hot
mat a with
acraf / know
raagil {pi riggaala) man
raagil 'atmaal
businessman
kuweeti Kuwaiti
taani another
kifaaya enough
kida like that, so
haniyyan with enjoyment
gaahiz ready
'akl food
ilkhamiis Thursday
nimrit tilifoon telephone
number
beet (pi buyuut) house,
home
f ilbeet at home
Sifr zero
maktab office
Hafla party, reception
mumtaaz lovely, splendid
tislam ideeki bless your
hands
sayyaara (pi sayyaraat) car
awaSSal / give a lift
Explanations
• To make an appointment with ...:
mumkin atmil mataad mata ...?
to which you add the time, day, etc
• To ask 'Do you know him?': titrafu?
and 'Do you know her?': titrafha?
nr
talaata w sittiin 63
• b- or bi- is used before verbs if the action is
ongoing or habitual
ana batkallim Ldrabi
bashrab biira I drink (or am drinking) beer
• a'addim means 'I introduce'.
With -lak (m) or -lik (f), it means 'I introduce to
you
a'addimlak kaamil Hasan let me introduce
kaamil Hasan to you ( talking to a man )
• The imperative of akallim (I talk to) is kallim. -ni
(me) can be added to it:
kallimni talk to me/call me
• More plurals
Adjectives, like nouns, have plural forms, but
they are only used when referring to human
beings.
luTaaf is the plural of laTiif (nice):
innaas luTaaf the people are nice
NB Plural nouns not referring to human beings
take the feminine singular adjective:
issandwitshaat kwayyisa the sandwiches are
nice
shikaat siyaHiyya travellers cheques
• itfaDDalu is the plural form of itfaDDal or
jtfaDDali; you might hear it when somebody is
inviting everyone to come and eat.
• tiSbaHu Cala kheer (good night) is the plural of
tiSbaH(i) tala kheer.
• The commonest way of referring to a man
politely is to use issayyid (Mr) followed by both
his first and second names: issayyid John Bates.
The equivalent term for a woman is madaam,
and for a girl, 'anisa.
It
idduktuur and idduktuura (Dr) are used before
someone's first or second name.
il'ustaaz and il'ustaaza (lit Professor) are often
used as a polite title for anyone with literary or
academic qualifications.
Other job titles like ilmuhandis (engineer) are
also used to introduce someone.
When addressing people, any of the following
might be appropriate.
duktuur(a)
'ustaaz(a)
sayyid kamaal
madaam
ya
Worth knowing
Social visits in Arab countries can involve a wealth
of polite exchanges of welcome and appreciation,
some of which have cropped up in previous
chapters.
If you are invited home, you might well hear
sharraftuuna (lit you have honoured us), which
can be said at the beginning or the end of a visit.
When being introduced, a common expression is
furSa saCiida (pleased to meet you, lit a happy
occasion), and also itsharraft (I am honoured)
and itsharrafna (we are honoured).
In business dealings, a common way of wishing
someone 'good luck' is b ittawfiiq ( lit with
success), not forgetting the usual in sha'allaah.
To thank someone and say you've had enough,
say: shukran, kifaaya kida. The reply will often be:
haniyyan (glad you enjoyed it, lit with enjoyment),
which is used after either food or drink.
*\e
64 arbata w sittiin
khamsa w sittiin 65
: ::~z 'rent the hostess on her hospitality:
: s-am iddeeki (lit bless your hands)
-5 vou eave someone's home, you will often hear
^wwartu beetna (you have brought light to our
~ouse' and maCa 'alfi salaama (with a thousand
goodbyes).
t i —
1 You're making a phone call. Ask if the
following people are in:
a the director
b Dr White
c Mr kamaal gindi
d Mrs zeenab
2 Which of the following expressions would you
use A as a host or hostess, B as a guest?
a sharraftuuna A or B?
b tislam 'ideeki A or B?
c 'alf# shukr A or B?
d maca 'alfi salaama A or B?
e nawwartu beetna A or B?
3 Read the following dialogue aloud twice then
answer the questions that follow.
Hostess misaa' ilkheer ya duktuur ashraf.
ahlan wa sahlan. nawwart/ beetna.
Guest ahlan biiki. izzayyik?
Hostess kwayyisa, ilHamdu lillaah ...
itfaDDal ... tishrab 'eeh?
Guest
a
b
Additional vocabulary
c
d
miraati my wife
walad (pi 'awlaad) son, child
e
miraatak your wife
SaaHib (pi 'aSHaab)
goozi my husband
friend fm)
goozik your husband
SaHba friend (f)
4
him
a
Exercises
b
faDlik.
Hostess itfaDDal. titraf issaayyid khaalid
gamaal, raagil 'aCmaal min
baghdaad?
furSa saCiida. itsharraft.
What time of day is it?
Who has just arrived?
What does he have to drink?
Who is he introduced to?
Where does the latter come from, and what's
his job?
Ask a business acquaintance if you can see
tomorrow
tomorrow afternoon
at half past four
on Monday
on Thursday morning
the day after tomorrow
in the hotel
at home
c
d
e
f
g
h
vv
66 sitta w sittiin
sabCa w sittiin 67
Can you ‘GET BY’ ?
When you have finished the course, try your hand
at this test. There is a possible maximum score of
65 points. Check your answers on p80. You might
like to keep a record of your score, try the test
again after a few days and see if you have
improved.
First contacts
1 Say 'good evening'.
2 Reply to SabaaH ilkheer.
3 Reply to ahlan wa sahlan.
4 Ask a woman how she is.
5 Ask a man when you'll see him.
6 Ask a woman where she's from.
7 Say you're from England.
8 Say you're not from here.
9 Say you're a student (female).
1 0 Say thank you very much.
1 1 Say goodnight (to a couple).
Eating and drinking
Ask for the following:
1 2 two coffees and a tea
1 3 the menu, please (to the waiter)
14 three orange juices
1 5 one chicken and two grilled fish
16 a cheese sandwich
17 a vegetable soup
1 8 the bill, please (to a waitress)
Now ask:
1 9 what sandwiches there are.
20 what juices he's got.
21 if there's any wine here.
22 where the restaurant is.
23 what time breakfast is.
Shopping
Ask the price of:
24 that galabiyya ...
25 ... and that red one
26 the large bag
27 a kilo of potatoes
28 four stamps for England
Say:
29 That bag is very expensive.
30 Can I see a bigger size?
31 I want to buy a film for this camera.
32 Have you got a map of Cairo? (to a man)
33 Impossible. That's very expensive (referring
to a souvenir camel).
Out and about
Ask for:
34 A ticket to Aswan ...
35 ... second class ...
36 ... return.
Say:
37 I want to go to the pyramids (you're a man).
38 I want to go the day after tomorrow (you're a
woman).
39 Is the museum near here?
40 Where's the nearest telephone?
41 Is there a plane in the afternoon?
42 Can I take a taxi?
43 Straight on here and second street on the
left.
44 Is this the train for Port Said?
In a hotel
45 Ask the receptionist if he has a room with
bath.
46 Say you haven't got a reservation.
47 Ask if you can make a phone call from here.
48 Say you want to change some sterling.
49 Say 'room number 21 3'.
H
68 tamanya w sittiin
tista w sittiin 69
50 Ask where the lavatory is.
51 Say you have travellers cheques.
52 Say the phone isn't working.
53 Say 'that's for you' (when tipping a man).
Social encounters
Ask:
54 What would you like to drink? (to a man)
55 Do you speak English? (to a woman)
56 Do you know Dr saami? (to a man)
57 Are you happy in London? (to a woman)
58 Another juice?
Say:
59 I have an appointment with Mr Hasan ...
60 ... at half past three.
61 Cairo is very big, isn't it?
62 What languages do you speak? (to a woman)
63 You speak a little Arabic ...
64 ... and French so so.
65 Finally, wish someone success.
70 sabtiin V‘
Reference
section
Language notes
• Nouns and adjectives
il- is prefixed to definite nouns and adjectives:
'akl kwayyis nice food
il'akl ilkwayyis the nice food
• A final -a indicates the feminine:
mudarris laTiif a nice teacher (m)
mudarrisa laTiif a a nice teacher (f)
• Demonstratives (this/that/these/those)
da (f) and dool (pi) are added to definite
nouns:
il'akl da this/that food
ilmudiira di this/that manageress
innaas dool these/those people
da, di and dool can be used by themselves when
referring to masculine, feminine or plural nouns:
da kwayyis that (m) is fine
di kibiira that (f) one is big
dool min landan those are from London
• Plurals
-aat is often added to the singular:
dolaar - dolaraat sandwitsh - sandwitshaat
More usually the word changes internally,
following one of half a dozen different
'patterns'. You just have to learn which plural
pattern each noun takes.
The commonest patterns:
kart kuruut 'irsh 'uruush
shanTa shunaT furSa furaS
Y> waaHid wi sabtiin 71
maktab makaatib
maTCam maTaa9im
isbuut asabiit
tazkara tazaakir
sigaara sagaayir
miftaaH mafatiiH
SaaHib 'aSHaab Sanf 'aSnaaf
walad 'awlaad nooL 'anwaat
After a plural noun a feminine singular adjective
is usually used:
sandwitshaat kibiira big sandwiches
but the plural form of the adjective is used if the
noun refers to human beings:
naas luTaaf nice people
This is a common pattern for plural adjectives:
Sughayyar Sughaar
• The dual
Instead of using the number 'two', the noun
takes the 'dual' ending -een:
yoom day yomeen two days
In feminine nouns the -a ending changes to
-teen:
Haaga thing Hagteen two things
When ordering food or drink, the singular noun
is used with all numbers:
itneen biira two beers
arbala shaay four teas
• Comparatives and superlatives
The same basic pattern is used to make both the
comparative (eg bigger) and superlative (eg
biggest)
kibiir big 'akbar bigger, biggest
rikhiiS cheap 'arkhaS cheaper, cheapest
When it means 'bigger', 'cheaper' etc, it follows
the noun:
Haaga 'arkhaS something cheaper
and it comes before the noun when it means
'biggest', 'cheapest', etc:
'arkhaS Haaga the cheapest thing
72 itneen wi sabtiin
• Pronouns
As the subject of
following forms:
ana I
inta you (m)
inti you ff)
huwwa he
hiyya she
a sentence they take the
iHna we
intu you <pl)
humma they
Following a noun or preposition they take the
forms:
-i
-ak
-ik
-u
-ha
-na
-ku
-hum
beeti
beetak
beetik
beetu
beetha
beetna
beetku
beethum
my home
your (m) home
your If) home
his home
her home
our home
your (pD home
their home
After a preposition:
'uddaami in front of me
tandu lit with him, ie he has
After verbs, almost the same forms are used;
only the 'me' form is different:
kallim speak to kallimni speak to me
• A regular verb in the present tense:
ashrab
tishrab
tishrabi
yishrab
tishrab
I drink
you (m) drink
you (f) drink
he drinks
she drinks
nishrab
tishrabu
we drink
you (pD
drink
yishrabu they drink
ie various prefixes and suffixes are added to the
base -shrab-.
These forms can follow mumkin (can), laazim
(must) and Caawiz or tawza (want):
mumkin ashrab? can I drink?
laazim tishrab you (m) must drink
taawiz yishrab he wants to drink
vr
talaata w sabtiin 73
• bi- precedes the verb if the action is habitual or
ongoing:
hiyya bitishrab mayya she (usually) drinks (or is
now drinking) water
bititkallim ingiliizi? do you speak English?
• Imperatives
The initial t- of the second person is lost:
ishrab! drink! (ml
ishrabi! drink! (f)
ishrabu! drink! (p!)
For verbs like ashuuf (see) and aruuH (go),
where the base begins with a single consonant,
the initial -i is lost as well:
shuuf! look! (m)
shuufi! look! (f)
shuufu! look! (p!)
• Negatives
In 'verbless' sentences like
ana min landan I (am) from London
huwwa laTiif he (is) kind, pleasant
mish is inserted:
ana mish min landan
huwwa mish laTiif etc
With verbs, ma- and -sh are placed before and
after the verb:
mayishuufsh he doesn't see
The same is true for fiih and £.and-:
mafiish 'akl there is no food
maCandiish sayyaara I don't have a car
maCandaksh sandwitshaat? don't you have
sandwiches?
• Days of the week
yoom litneen Monday
yoom ittalaat Tuesday
yoom larbat Wednesday
yoom ilkhamiis Thursday
yoom ilgumta Friday
yoom issabt Saturday
yoom ilHadd Sunday
yoom (day) can be omitted.
• Months of the year
yanaayir January yulyu July
fibraayir February aghusTus August
maaris March sibtimbir September
abriil April uktuubar October
mayyu May nuvimbir November
yunyu June disimbir December
• The seasons
irrabiiC the spring iSSeef the summer
ilkhariif the autumn i shsh ita the winter
• Numbers
0
Sifr
14
arbaCtaashar
1
waaHid
15
khamastaashar
2
itneen
16
sittaashar
3
talaata
17
sabt ataashar
4
arbaLa
18
tamantaashar
5
khamsa
19
tisactaashar
6
sitta
20
tishriin
7
sabCa
30
talatiin
8
tamanya
40
arbitiin
9
tisCa
50
khamsiin
10
Cashara
60
sittiin
1 1
Hidaashar
70
sabCiin
12
itnaashar
80
tamaniin
13
talattaashar
90
tisCiin
Any number over 1 0 is followed by a singular
noun:
Hidaashar yoom 1 1 days
talatiin Taalib 30 students
To make numbers like twenty-five, fifty-three,
74 arbata w sabtiir
khamsa w sabtiin 75
say 'five and twenty', 'three and fifty':
2 5 khamsa w Cishriin
53 talaata w khamsiin
100 miyya 1000 'alf
200 miteen 2000 'alfeen
300 tultumiyya 3000 talat alaaf
400 rubtumiyya 4000 arbatt alaaf
500 khumsumiyya 5000 khamast alaaf
600 suttumiyya 6000 sitt alaaf
700 subtumiyya 7000 sabatt alaaf
800 tumnumiyya 8000 tamant alaaf
900 tustumiyya 9000 tisatt alaaf
When 100 - 900 are followed by a noun,
-miyya becomes -miit:
£400 rubLumiit gineeh
300.000 tultumiit 'alf
400.000 rubCumiit 'alf
Key to exercises
Chapter 1
1 a ana min ingiltira.
b ismi John.
2 a ana min maSr. (or ana min ilqaahiral.
b ismi Taari'.
3 a afternoon or evening,
b morning
c any time of day
4 a misaa' innuur.
b SabaaH innuur.
c ahlan biik(i).
5 a ahlan wa sahlan. ismak 'eeh?
b inta mineen?
6 a ahlan wa sahlan. ismik 'eeh?
b inti mineen?
7 a SabaaH ilkheer ya mu'nis.
b (inta) izzayyak?
c ashuufak imta?
d in sha'allaah.
76 sitta w sabtiin V*i
Chapter 2
1 a taSiir burTu'aan min faDlak.
b itneen biira min faDlak.
c sandwitsh min faDlak.
d 'ahwa maZbuuT min faDlak.
e shurbit khuDaar min faDlak.
f ilHisaab min faDlak.
2 min faDlak would become min faDlik.
3 a fiih 'ahwa?
b fiih CaSiir manga?
c fiih shurbit baSal?
d fiih ruzz?
e fiih sandwitshaat?
4 a tandak ’ahwa?
b tandak CaSiir manga?
c tandak shurbit baSal? ,
d tandak ruzz?
e tandak sandwitshaat?
5 a tandak sandwitshaat gibna?
b fiih nibiit hina?
c tandak mayya matdaniyya?
d ilHisaab min faDlak.
e shukran.
Chapter 3
1 a a big bag
b the big bag
c the bag is big
d this bag is big
2 a tandak kuruut buSTaal min faDlak?
b tandak Tawaabit min faDlak?
c tandak film mulawwan min faDlak?
d tandak shanTa kibiira min faDlak?
e tandak gallabiyya Hamra?
3 a mumkin ashuuf gallabiyya?
b mumkin ashuuf ilkamera di?
c mumkin ashuuf ma'aas 'akbar?
d mumkin ashuuf Sanf 'arkhaS?
4 a bi kam kiilu ilburTu'aan?
b bi kam nuSS kiilu illamuun?
c bi kam itneen kiilu ilmooz?
d bi kam nuSS kiilu issukkar?
5 a di ghalya 'awi
b da jjhaali 'awi
c da jjhaali 'awi
d di ghalya 'awi
VV sabta w sabtiin 77
6 a fiih shanTa 'akbar?
b fiih fustaan 'aSghar?
c fiih kamera 'arkhaS?
d fiih Sanf 'aHsan?
Chapter 4
1 a fiih Hammaam?
b fiih du shsh ?
c fiih tilifoon?
d fiih mayya sukhna?
2 a ilHammaam taTlaan.
b iddu shsh taTlaan.
c ittilifoon taTlaan.
d mafiish mayya sukhna.
3 a mumkin adfat ilHisaab?
b mumkin at mil tilifoon?
c mumkin aghayyar dolaraat?
4 SabaaH innuur.
fiih ’ooDa faDya?
bi siriir waaHid.
lelteen.
bi kam il'ooDa?
Chapter 5
1 taawiz ... [or tawza ...)
a aakhud taksi.
b aruuH ilharam.
c aruuH il'utiil.
d aruuH ilmatHaf.
e tazkara li 'aSwaan.
2 laazim ...
a taakhud taksi.
b tishuuf ilharam.
c tidfat ilHisaab.
d tiruuH il'agzakhaana.
3 laazim
a takhdi taksi
b tishuufi ilharam.
c tidfati ilHisaab.
d tiruuHi il'agzakhaana
4 a (imshi) tala Tool.
b (imshi) tala shsh imaal.
c (taakhuud) 'awwil shaarit tala lyimiin.
78 tamanya w sabtiin VA
5 (ana) taawiz aruuH 'aSwaan.
ddraga 'uula.
raayiH gayy.
itfaDDal.
6 a 5.30 b 2.15 c 10.20 d 2.55 e 12.45
Chapter 6
1 a ilmudiir mawguud?
b idduktuur White mawguud?
c issayyid kamaal gindi mawguud?
d madaam zeenab mawguuda?
2 a A bB cB d A or B eA
3 a afternoon or evening
b Dr ashraf
c mineral water
d Mr Idiaalid gamaal
e He's a businessman from Baghdad.
4 mumkin ashuufak ...
a bukra?
b bukra batd iDDuhr?
c issaata arbata w nuSS?
d (yoom) litneen?
e (yoom) ilkhamiis iSSubH?
f batd bukra?
g f il'utiil?
h f ilbeet?
V4 tis£.a w sabtiin 79
Answers to 'Can you get by?'
1 misaa’ ilkheer.
2 SabaaH innuur.
3 ahlan biik (to a man); ahlan biiki (to a woman)
4 izzayyik?
5 ashuufak imta?
6 inti mineen?
7 ana min ingiltira.
8 ana mish min hina.
9 ana Taaliba.
1 0 'alf shukr.
1 1 tiSbaHu tala kheer.
12 itneen 'ahwa w waaHid shaay.
1 3 ilminyu, min faDlak.
14 talaata taSiir burTu'aan.
1 5 waaHid firaakh w itneen samak mashwi.
16 (waaHid) sandwitsh gibna.
17 (waaHid) shurbit khuDaar.
18 ilHisaab, min faDlik.
19 fiih sand witshaat 'eeh?
20 tandak taSiir 'eeh?
21 fiih nibiit hina?
22 ilmaTtam feen?
23 ilfiTaar issaata kam?
24 bi kam ilgallabiyya di ...?
25 ... w ilHamra di?
26 bi kam i shsh anTa ilkibiira?
27 bi kam kiilu ilbaTaaTis?
28 bi kam arbat Tawaabit I ingiltira?
29 i shsh anTa di ghalya 'awi.
30 mumkin ashuuf ma'aas ’akbar?
31 taawiz (or tawza) film I ilkcimera di?
32 tandak khariiTa I ilqaahira?
33 mish mumkin. da ghaali 'awi.
34 tazkara li 'aSwaan
35 ...ddraga tanya
36 ...raayiH gayy.
37 taawiz aruuH ilharam.
38 tawza aruuH batd bukra.
39 ilmatHaf 'urayyib min hina?
40 feen 'a'rab tilifoon?
41 fiih Tayyaara iDDuhr?
42 mumkin aakhud taksi?
43 tala Tool hina wi taani shaarit tala shsh imaal.
44 da 'aTr buur satiid?
45 tandak 'ooDa bi Hammaam?
46 matandiish Hagz.
47 mumkin atmil tilifoon min hina?
A»
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
A1
ana taawiz (or tawza) aghayyar istirliini.
'ooDa nimra miteen wi talataashar.
ittwalett feen?
tandi shikaat siyaHiyya.
ittilifoon taTlaan (or mish shaghghaal).
da talashaanak.
tishrab 'eeh?
(inti) bititkallimi ingiliizi?
(inta) titraf idduktuur saami?
(inti) mabSuuTa fi landan?
taSiir taani?
tandi mataad mata issayyid Hasan ...
... issaata talaata w nuSS.
ilqaahira kibiira 'awi, mish kida? (or maSr
kibiira, mish kida?)
(inti) bititkallimi lughaat 'eeh?
(ana) batkallim tcirabi shuwayya ...
... wi faransaawi nuSS nuSS.
b ittawfiiq, in sha'allaah.
80
tamaniin
waaHid wi tamaniin 81
Word list
The following is a list of the words appearing in
the conversations in the six chapters.
The alphabetical order used is:
'abdDefgghhHikkhlmnoqrsS
shtT uvwyzZt
In addition, related forms are shown thus wherever
they seem valuable:
plurals Suura (pi Suwar)
masculines Hamra ( m 'aHmar)
feminines gaahiz (/ gahza)
Verbs are given in the first person singular form,
eg
ashtiri I buy
ashuuf I see
so if you are looking for the words tishrab or
titraf, look under ashrab or atraf. A fuller list of
verb forms can be found on p73-74.
'a'rab nearer, nearest
'aasif ( f 'asfa) sorry
'agzakhaana chemist
'ahwa coffee
’aHsan better, best
'akbar bigger, biggest
'akl food
'alf a thousand
'alf shukr many thanks
'alo hallo (on phone)
'arkhaS cheaper ; cheapest
'asanSiir lift
'asfa sorry (f)
'aSwaan Aswan
'aTr train
'awi very
'awwil (f 'uula) first
'aywa yes
'eeh? what?
'irsh (p/ 'uruush) piastre
'izaaza bottle
'ooDa (p/ 'owaD) room
'uddaam in front of
'umaash material
'urayyib (min) near ( to I
'uruush piastres
'utiil hotel
'uula first (f)
a
a'addimlak ... let me
introduce ... to you
aakul / eat
aakhud / take
adfat I pay
aghayyar / change
ahlan hallo, nice to meet you
ahlan biik(i) reply to ahlan
or ahlan wa sahlan
ahlan wa sahlan hallo, nice
to meet you, welcome
akallim / speak ( to )
aktib / write
almaani German
amDi / sign
amshi / go
ana /
arbaCa four
arbitiin forty
AT
aruuH / go (to)
ashrab / drink
ashtiri / buy
ashuuf / see
atkallim / speak
awaSSal / give a lift
ayyi khidma can / help you?;
don't mention it
at.mil tilifoon / make a
phone call
aCraf I know
b
balad town, country
bank bank
banyu bath
babuur passport
bass but; only
baSal onion
batkallim / speak
baTaaTis potatoes
baCd after
bacd bukra (the) day after
tomorrow
baCdeen later, then
batd iDDuhr afternoon
beeD eggs
beet <p/ buyuut) house, home
bi with
bi balaash free, for nothing
bi kam? how much?
bi kheer fine, well
bi kull suruur with the
greatest pleasure; certainly
biira beer
bisilla peas
biyiid (min) far ( from I
bukra tomorrow
burTu'aan orange
buur saCiid Port Said
d
da this, that (m)
ddraga class
di this, that If)
di'ii'a moment, minute
dilwa'ti now
dolaar (pi dolaraat) dollar
door floor
duktuur (/ -a) doctor
Af
du shsh shower
D
Duhr (after)noon
t
faaDi if faDya) empty, free
falaafil chick peas or beans
faransaawi French
farawla strawberry
feen? where?
fi in, at
fiih there is/are
film (p/ 'aflaam) film
firaakh chicken
fiTaar breakfast
furSa sat-iida pleased to
meet you
fuul cooked beans
9
gaahiz (/gahza) ready
gallabiyya (p/ -aat)
galabiyya
gamaaCa everyone
gamal camel
gambari prawns
gawaafa guava
gaww weather
gibna cheese
giddan very
gineeh pound
grepfruut grapefruit
gh
ghaali (f ghalya) expensive
h
haniyyan glad you enjoyed it
haram pyramids
hina here
hinaak there
hiyya she
hutiil hotel
huwwa he
H
HaaDir certainly, at once
Haaga Ip/ Hagaat) thing,
something
talaata w tamaniin 83
82 itneen wi tamaniin
Haaga kamaan? ( or Haaga
tanya?) anything else ?
Hafla (p/ Hafalaat) party,
reception
Hagz reservation
Hammaam bathroom
Hamra ( m 'aHmarl red
Harr hot
Hilw beautiful, fine, sweet
Hisaab bill
iddiini give me
ilHamdu lillaah fine (God be
praised)
ilkhamiis Thursday
ilkhartuum Khartoum
ilia less, without
ilqaahira Cairo
iltafw not at all; don't
mention it
imta? when?
ingiliizi English
ingiitira England
in sha'allaah God willing; /
hope so
inta you (m)
inti you (f)
iskindriyya Alexandria
ism name
issaata kam? what time is
it?; at what time?
issudaan Sudan
issutudiyya Saudi Arabia
istirliini sterling
iSSumaal Somalia
itfaDDal(i) here you are;
help yourself
itnaashar twelve
itneen two
izzayyak? how are you (to a
man)
izzayyik? how are you? (to a
woman)
k
kallimni ring me
kam? how much?; how
many?
kamaan also
84 arbata w tamaniin
k£mera camera
kart {pi kuruut) buSTaal
postcard
kibiir big
kibda liver
kida like that, so
kifaaya enough
kitiir a lot, much, many
kufta meat balls
kull each, every
kuweeti Kuwaiti
kwayyis fine, well
kh
khamsa five
khan ilkhaliili Khan El
Khalili
khariiTa map
khidma service
khuDaar vegetables
la' no
laazim it is necessary, have
to, must
lamuun lemon
landan London
laTiif (p/ luTaaf) nice,
pleasant
leela {pi layaali) night
li to, for
litneen Monday
lugha (p/ -aat) language
m
ma'aas size
mabSuuT happy
mafiish there isn't/aren't
maktab (p/ makaatib) office
malyaan full
manga mango
maSr Egypt, Cairo (see pi 9)
mashwi grilled
matHaf museum
maTtam (p/maTaatim)
restaurant
mawguud available, in
mayya (matdaniyya)
(mineral) water
maZbuuT right; exact;
At
medium sweet
mat a with
maCa ssalaama goodbye
maCaad appointment
matandiish I haven't
midaan square
midaan ittaHriir Liberation
Square
min from
mineen? where from?
min faDlak please (to a man)
min faDlik please (to a
woman)
minyu menu
misaa' ilkheer good
afternoon/evening
misaa’ innuur reply to
misaa' ilkheer
mish not
mish kida? isn't it?; isn't
that so?
miteen two hundred
mitr metre
mudarris If -a) teacher
mudiir {f a) manager,
director
muftaaH key
muhandis If -a) engineer
mulawwan coloured, in
colour
mumkin it is possible
mumtaaz lovely, splendid
n
naas people
nawwartu beetna you have
honoured us
nibiit wine
nimra number
nimrit tilifoon telephone
number
nuSS half
nuSS nuSS so so
nuuba Nubia
raagil (p/ riggaala) man
raagil 'atmaal businessman
raayiH single
raayiH gayy return
raSiif platform
rikhiiS cheap
rubt quarter
ruzz rice
s
sa'ta cold
saata hour; time
sabaanikh spinach
sabta seven
sabtiin seventy
samak fish
sanduu' box
sandwitsh (p/ -aat) sandwich
sayyaara (p/ sayyaraat) car
sayyid Mr
siriir bed
sitta six
sittiin sixty
sukhna hot
suttumiyya six hundred
S
SabaaH ilkheer good morning
SabaaH innuur reply to
SabaaH ilkheer
Sanf {pi 'aSnaaf) kind, sort
Sifr zero
SubH morning
Suura (p/ Suwar) picture
sh
shaarit (p/ shawaarit) street
shaay tea
shanTa (p/ shunaT) bag
sharraftuuna you have
honoured us
shiik (p/shikaat) siyaHiyya
travellers cheque
shiisha hubble bubble
shimaal left
shirka {pi sharikaat) company
shukran thank you
shurba soup
shuwayya a little, quite
t
taani (/tanya) second; other
taksi {pi taksiyyaat) taxi
talaata three
khamsa w tamaniin 85
talatiin thirty
taman cost, price
tamanya eight
tanya second (f)
tazkara (pi tazaakir) ticket
tiSbaH Cala kheer good
night
tilifoon telephone
tilivizyoon television
tilt a third; twenty minutes
tislam ideeki thank you for
your hospitality Hit bless
your hands)
T
Taabit. {pi TawaabiC) stamp
Taalib(f-a) student
TabCan of course
Tayyaara (pi Tayyaraat)
aeroplane
Tayyib OK, well now ...
T at rrnyya fried cakes of
ground beans
w
waaHid (f waHda) one
walla or
wi and
y
ya form of address (see
pi 7)
y afandim sir
ya beeh sir
ya madaam madam
yimiin right
yoom Ipl 'ayyaam) day
z
zimiil (pi zamaayil)
colleague
t
^.aawiz (or taayiz) l/you/he
want(s)
Lafwan not at all; don't
mention it
tala on
tala Tool straight on
talashaan for
tandi / have
tSrabi Arabic
taSiir juice
taTlaan not working
tawza (or tayza) l/you/she
want Is)
tishriin twenty
An introduction to Arabic writing
The purpose of this section is to help you
recognise public signs, posters, notices and the
like which you will see on visits to Arab countries.
Arabic is written from right to left, and its alphabet
has 29 letters. Most of these letters are easy to
pronounce for English speakers, as equivalent
sounds exist in English (see Pronunciation guide,
p8). The Arabic alphabet and the corresponding
transliterations are as follows:
At
NB 'th' is pronounced as in 'thanks' and 'th' as in
'that'
kh
H j or g th
t
b
a 'glottal stop
L J
)
C-
D
S sh
S
Z
r th
d
J*
u* J 1
a*
j
j i
J
b
k
q f
gh
t z
T
*1
J
s>
y
w
h
n
m
1
lS
}
0
»
r
J
These three letters are used
as long vowels:
aa
\ ii
S or
k >
uu J
The glottal stop * is usually
'carried' on top of one
c
of the long vowel symbols; eg | = 'a
NB The sound represented by j (as in 'that') has
changed into 'd' or 'z' in spoken Egyptian Arabic,
and the sound represented by O (as in 'thanks')
has changed into 't' or 's'.
There are vowel 'marks' which are not included in
the 29 letters of the alphabet. They can be shown,
written above or below the consonant (eg o = t a <
O = ti, o = tu), but in writing and print the
marks are nearly always omitted, (a bit like English
shorthand) as those who know the language well
can recognise the words without them.
If a consonant is doubled, a ' appears above the
letter: (egpUj>- = Hammaam, £L, = sitta).
Unlike English, Arabic letters are 'joined up' into
words not only in writing but in print as well. The
'joining' system, however, is subject to certain
rules to avoid risk of confusion and also for
aesthetic purposes (Arabs are very proud of the
beauty of the Arabic script).
AV
86 sitta w tamaniin
sabca w tamaniin 87
1 The following letters never join the letter
following them.
} j j ^ i '
2 The following letters 'shrink' when they are
joined up, ie they become narrower.
3 The following letters lose their tails or
'flourishes' when they join. The letters are still
easily recognisable after their tails are cut.
4 The final letter in all words is written in full,
that is to say, it retains its original shape as given
in the alphabet list above.
5 The following table shows those letters that
change depending on whether they come at the
beginning, in the middle or at the end of a word.
End Middle Beginning
4. i O JL J
f _p
f *- -X- _P
*• ® - 4 -
<£ iS -y -J
NB S is a feminine ending, so it is always a final
letter. If joined to the previous letter, it is L . The
final letter iS can stand for a final 'a'.
The following shows how separate letters join
together to form words according to the above
rules. We have used each letter in the three
possible positions - beginning, middle and end.
Translations are not given as the words are
intended simply as examples of the appearance of
the writing system. Remember, you are reading
from right to left.
88 tamanya w tamaniin
AA
tista w tamaniin 89
Jji
J* * J
\
o
r* J ^
is
j
t :•
t-lC. A
r J f
^ \
f’ r>
> j- J v_j
iL
V^'
» Ji
jail
^ O* f
di— *
^ j
-Lw*» '
j* r
^ j
~3J
I
-tS
jai
J & d
Jpv
JLm^>
^ I ^ f 4 U
C *
.^dju
o < 1 * J
^ i r -
/" ■ r' sh
&
o- 2
~*s
J
u j i
L
r u r
s
is T
is Z
C gh
^ f
iU-
Lii
wii
- q
90 tis^iin
^ r
i— s O -S" »
.
JJ S'
*J
k
,‘L .,
<
J f C
j J
** « — ■> J
J
1
Uj>“
w
~J
o •
r J J
^ f «d-
il J r
m
p
dl*—
dJIU
j >_j J
O 0 ^
> id
j
n
ujJ
.} J 4.j j
J -f
A ; Jfc
_a
h
0 -LIj 43 j
(j*
J J c
J J
•> J 3
«
J
w
J
J ji
j] }
S ■> -A ^ J J
J c j
■i T~ J
<1, '
<S
y
^ Jl
Jjf
Here is a list of some of the words and phrases
you will be most likely to see on signs and notices.
They are given with (a) a 'spoken' form following
the transliteration system explained on pp8-10 and
(b) an English translation.
menu
ilminyu
restaurant
maTCam
fuOJ*
hotel
hutiil
Jr’d*
hotel
funduq
J-Ui
WC
doorit mayya
«L*
M
waaHid wi tis£.iin 91
gents
1 irrigaal
JUJ!
ladies
1 issayyidaat
danger
khaTar
exit
khuruug
5 *>-
no entry
mamnuut
iddukhuul
J ^ Y
no smoking
mamnuut
ittadkhiin
no photographs
mamnuut
ittaSwiir
J ^ - - ' Y
no parking
mamnuut wuquuf
issayyaraat
^ *£ • Y
OKllJl
bus stop
mawqaf il'utubiis
c
taxi rank
mawqaf ittaksi
S"bJl
s-> --
car park
mawqaf
issayyaraat
post office
maktab ilbariid
-L) J-J 1 V
information
office
maktab
ilistitlamaat
information
ilistitlamaat
tourist office
ticket window
bank
maktab
issiyaaHa
s_hibbaak
ittazaakir
maSraf
/"Ijdi iJCi
92 itneen wi tistiin
bank
bank
bureau de
change
maSraf taghyiir
iltumla
j^jCi k t j-* 2 -*
bureau de
change
maktab Siraafa
iil j-js
to the airport
ila ImaTaar
jlkil J)
to the station
ila ImaHaTTa
*b>A\ JI
stop
qif
customs
ilgamaarik
passports and
visas
ilgawazaat w
itta'shiiraat
ol^whJIj oljljJ-l
embassy
sifaara
& \ LLw
consulate
qunSuliyya
museum
matHaf
exhibition
matraD
company
shirka
telephone
ittilifoon
j^LLdl
telephone
ilhaatif
s a> LLI j
telephones
tilifoonaat
telegrams
tilighrafaat
Oli'
hospital
mustashfa
o
chemist's 'agzakhaana
chemist's Saydaliyya £jj ^
talaata w tistiin 93
police station qism ilbuliis
police station markaz ishshurTa
cafe maqha ^4-^
In much of the Arab world, the following figures
are used:
* a v i o i r r >
9876543210
Compound numbers are written from left to right
as in English.
vai trio r o \ i v i o mo
7 8643 1 5 Tel: 3 5 1 4 7 6 1985
NB In north-west Africa, the original (Arabic!)
numbers have been retained: 1, 2, 3 ...
*1
94
arba9a w tis9iin
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